Failure is normal
Failure is not the exception, it’s the likely outcome. By accepting this you can reduce any fear and anxiety you might have around failure. Recognising the most successful people are usually the ones who have failed the most. “If failure is not an option, then neither is success.” – Seth Godin
Failure is learning
Every time we fail, we should be able to learn something. It might be about what doesn’t work, or something about ourselves and the context in which we perform. When we fail it’s important to take time for analysis, understanding what when wrong and why. This is knowledge to be used next time.
Reframing failure
Failure is not an endpoint, it’s a checkpoint and a necessary part of the creative process. You can reframe to see a failure as an opportunity not a setback. You should also pause to celebrate the effort and courage you gave to trying something new, knowing it might not work. Celebrate the progress and all wins, big or small.
Building resilience
Every time you embrace a failure it should make it less confronting and easier to do so again in the future. Every time you do so helps you to build your resilience “muscle”, building it through repetition. Persistence over time is the key to longer-term success. Find others to support you in this endeavour.
Working in iterations
A failure might be complex, or it may be the result of a single flaw. Failure becomes a feedback loop in identifying flaws and allowing you to identify and correct them iterating towards success.
Embrace vulnerability
We’ll often persist with an escalating of commitment to a losing course of action, reluctant to admit our failure. It takes courage to admit failure, and it demonstrates your willingness to take on risk and learn from the process. By being vulnerable, you’ll build connections, understanding and in the long run will save you time and discomfort.
Future focussed
Failure should be used to inform you, not define you. They can be the fuel for future success, not an anchor on trying. It might be that the next thing you try will succeed.
A conclusion
The one way to guarantee you won’t succeed is to not start.
Begin by accepting it might not work, and determined to understand what won’t work in a quest to identify what does work.
Failure isn’t the opposite of success, but an intrinsic part of it. When we reframe failure in this way, we change it from something to be feared into a tool for growth and accomplishment
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