Are you afraid to fail? Most of us are, and it’s an almost inevitable part of life (unless you simply give up before you even try).
You’ve probably failed a few times, or many times. Good for you! Seriously! Whether your failures were personal or professional, they are extremely valuable lessons.
Nobody likes to be told they are a failure (or to feel like one, in spite of what others say). It’s hard to accept, and it can damage your self-esteem. But what if you can move past the unpleasantness of the failure, learn from it, and reach higher? That’s when the magic happens!
The ONLY failure is quitting. That’s it. The only one. Everything else is a real blessing (in disguise).
Let’s take the letters in the word FAILURE and create some personal alchemy. Let’s turn them into gold:
FORGET: don’t constantly wish you could have a do-over. You can’t. Forget what didn’t work out, except for one thing: what did you learn from the failure? What can you take with you?
ACCEPT: Accept that failures are important, and accept your role in the failure. Everything you do is a choice (from deciding which shirt to wear to what to say to the person next to you on the bus, to choosing to do (or not do) a training run at night after work just because you need to get your training in…).
INVESTIGATE: What specific decisions (steps) did you make that resulted in that outcome? What could you have done differently, and how would you do it better next time?
LOOK: There are always answers and solutions waiting for you, either in your environment (be very alert and aware), in your mind (listen to your intuition and be creative) and in the people around you. Alternatives are about. Look for them, and be open to trying a new way.
UNDERSTAND: Failures are a part of life. You ARE not a failure just because you have failed. You did something, or didn’t do something, but you are not your actions. You performed those actions. YOU are not a failure. Your methodology was a bust, but you learned from it. Right?
RE-EVALUATE: Re-evaluate how you go about achieving goals. Remember this very wise phrase: “As I am with one thing, I am with everything.” Take note of your HABITS – specifically the habits you may have (like procrastination) that hold you back. Change those habits. Create positive, proactive habits and make a plan of action.
EXPECT: Visualize yourself achieving your goal. Stick to your plan, and work it all the way to completion. Do not let fear and doubt stop you. EXPECT to succeed, knowing that every failure brings you one step (or a hundred steps) closer to your goal.
Inspired by a post by Wayne Hartzell
http://www.personal-goal-setting.com