Failure, that infamous word that everyone experiences but doesn't want to admit. We all go through bouts of failure, it's a rite of passage so to speak.
Think about a baby. Babies will fail at walking hundreds of times before they take their first successful steps. The only difference is babies don't know about the stigma that comes with failure... so they try, try again until they succeed.
For adults failure isn't the problem. It's what they do after they fail. They quit! Failure is just the excuse they were looking for to justify their urge to quit. Most people choose a life of ease and convenience over the hard work and trial necessary to accomplish real achievements.
People who are aware of this urge can control it and dial in on their goal. With that laser focus they see failure as a common and harmless reality of having high aims and standards.
The truth of the matter is if we do not fail from time to time then we are not trying to accomplish anything new, bold and significant. We have all heard that our goals should be SMART goals. SMART stands for:
Specific
Measurable
Achievable
Realistic
Time Limited
By following this framework, you will ensure that all of your goals are more likely to be accomplished than not. The last part of the SMART goal that isn't part of the acronym is that your goals should scare you enough to force you to be brave enough to accomplish it. Bravery isn't about not being scared, it's being scared but still deciding to march forward anyway. When your goals evoke the strong emotions of fear and bravery, that is a sure sign that they are new, bold and significant.
So I hope at this point you realize that the fear of failure and failure itself is necessary and holds no real power over us. In truth failure often dies when we adopt a learning mindset. Instead of becoming saddened or frustrated to the point of failure, we must simply become curious, asking, what am I doing wrong (self observation) and how can I make adjustments (learning and adapting to the circumstances) to get past this sticking point.
By taking the time to stop and analyze why you are failing you will better understand what to do the next time you encounter this problem, which will help you be even more of your best self and provide even more of your best services to the people you love, your community and world.
Successful people become confident in their abilities and that confidence leads to them overcoming failure. What goals have you repeatedly failed at? It's not too late to get back in the saddle and conquer them. Lastly, please remember we all need to experience failure so we can appreciate success!
Coach Jamel
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