Along any journey there will be bumpy roads and smooth rides, sunny weather and dark storms. Even when you decide to start living your dream, it doesn’t automatically make the journey easy. In fact in can often be more challenging, as we head into the unknown and take the ‘road less traveled’.
Failure is a dirty word that comes up quite often in life’s journey, so how do we deal with it?
1. Failure is just a word - you give it the definition
Many of us have been raised in homes where failure is this big scary word that doesn’t come up in conversation. Failure is something to be feared, something to avoid and most importantly something we never want to encounter. It’s a word that brings dread, tears and disappointment.
But that’s just it - it’s just a word!
If you want to live a full life, it’s important to examine how you view failure. Failure can be good in many ways. We need to stop running away from it. When failure arises we need to look at it straight in the eyes, learn from it then let it go and move on.
2. Failure is inevitable - so embrace it
Failure is inevitable. So instead of running away from it, being embarrassed by it, or hiding from it, we should just reside to the fact that along any journey we will encounter some sort of failure. It’s just part of the process and nothing to be feared.
Most people don’t live their dreams because they are afraid of failure. Don’t let failure hold you back! Start seeing failure for what it truly is - a teacher, a motivator, a reason to succeed.
3. Failure is our greatest teacher - learn from it
Failure has many valuable lessons hidden inside of it. You just need to ask the right questions. When we fail at something, many of us would prefer never to talk about it. We would prefer to bury our feelings deep inside our subconscious and quickly move on.
The biggest mistake we can make is not taking the time to learn from our failures.
Ask yourself, what is the biggest lesson this experience has taught me? What can I do differently next time? How is this failure a positive step along my journey? What am I grateful for?
4. Failure means you are taking action - carry on
It’s much easier to sit on the sidelines than play the game. Those who risk nothing, have nothing! It takes a certain amount of risk to live your dreams, and with risk there is a chance of failure.
So if things don’t go exactly how you had planned, view this failure as a reminder that you are a brave, courageous person who is daring to live their dreams and not satisfied with being average.
There are far too many people sitting on the sidelines, blaming failure for keeping them there.
5. Failure shows you how badly you want something - don’t give up
When we fail at something it helps us determine how badly we wanted it in the first place. If something doesn’t work out how you had planned, you have 2 choices - give up or try again.
If giving up comes too easy, then you know you have embarked on this journey for the wrong reasons. Perhaps it wasn’t in line with your values, or perhaps it was someone else’s dream and not your own. Examine why giving up is so easy.
Conversely if this failure/ obstacle breaks your heart and keeps you up at night, you know it’s something you really want, and you need to look at new ways of achieving your goal.
6. The great success stories in life stem from some of the greatest failures.
6. The great success stories in life stem from some of the greatest failures.
Take Steve Jobs, CEO of Apple, for example. He dropped out of college after 6 months. After starting Apple in his garage and working hard for ten years, he launched the Macintosh. In those 10 years he built Apple into a $2 billion business. And then he got fired!
“I was a very public failure, and I even thought about running away from the valley. But something slowly began to dawn on me — I still loved what I did. The turn of events at Apple had not changed that one bit. I had been rejected, but I was still in love. And so I decided to start over. I didn’t see it then, but it turned out that getting fired from Apple was the best thing that could have ever happened to me.”
During the next 5 years, Steve Jobs started NeXT and Pixar, which went on to create the worlds first computer animated film, Toy Story, and is now the most successful animation studio in the world. In a strange turn of events, Apple bought NeXT, and Steve returned to Apple. Steve Jobs experienced failure many times over but it's his view of failure that made him a success.
Bill Cosby failed the 10th grade and dropped out of high school to join the Navy. While he was recovering from being injured in the Korean War, he observed how his fellow navy officers were studying and focused on personal growth. He decided to finish his high school diploma via correspondence.
Google has had many successes behind their name, but have also had many failures. The company launched Google Wave, a web application designed to integrate email, social networking, and instant messaging; but decided to shut it down, less than a year after its launch.
During the next 5 years, Steve Jobs started NeXT and Pixar, which went on to create the worlds first computer animated film, Toy Story, and is now the most successful animation studio in the world. In a strange turn of events, Apple bought NeXT, and Steve returned to Apple. Steve Jobs experienced failure many times over but it's his view of failure that made him a success.
Bill Cosby failed the 10th grade and dropped out of high school to join the Navy. While he was recovering from being injured in the Korean War, he observed how his fellow navy officers were studying and focused on personal growth. He decided to finish his high school diploma via correspondence.
When he finished in the navy he applied for Temple University where he was awarded a track and field scholarship. Although his tuition was paid for, Cosby took a job as a bartender to pay for his room and board. The customers loved his wit and humor and demanded to hear more of his jokes. As word spread about the comical bartender, opportunities came for Cosby to entertain audiences as a paid comedian.
As his popularity grew, Cosby faced a choice: should he stay in school or pursue a career in comedy? He agonized over the choice, but decided to drop out of school for the second time in his life, which many people saw as a failure.
However he quickly attained fame as a stand-up comedian, then as a movie actor, followed by the famous Cosby Show. He has gone on to author many books, finished college and now has an education fund for the underprivileged.
Google has had many successes behind their name, but have also had many failures. The company launched Google Wave, a web application designed to integrate email, social networking, and instant messaging; but decided to shut it down, less than a year after its launch.
Google CEO Eric Schmidt said; "We celebrate our failures. This is a company where it's absolutely okay to try something that's very hard, have it not be successful, and take the learning from that."
I wish you a life filled with Purpose, Passion & Possibility
I wish you a life filled with Purpose, Passion & Possibility
Jacqui O’Bree is the owner of Fullife Coaching and a
qualified Life Coach. Her vision is to help people live with Purpose, Passion
and Possibility in both their personal and professional lives. Jacqui runs group
workshops and offers one-on-one coaching, with a special focus on career,
parenting, work/ life balance, and financial freedom. Jacqui is a regular
contributor to magazines and a popular speaker at events. She resides in
Fourways, Johannesburg. You can contact her on jacqui@fullife-coach.com or visit www.fullife-coach.com
