If you are too afraid of failure, you can’t possibly do what needs to be done to be successful.
I fail far more than you might assume, especially given the fact that I’ve written hundreds of articles, coached thousands of people, and even written a book on forming productive habits, being mindful, and finding contentment despite our struggles.
I fail at all of those things sometimes, and it feels just as dreadful for me as it does for anybody else.
I come down hard on myself, feel guilty, try to avoid thinking about it, and would rather hide my failures from everyone I know.
Yes, failing hurts! And yet, I brush myself off, get back up and try again.
I still fail at getting to the gym sometimes, but I keep trying. And I’m actually pretty good these days at sticking to a regular workout regimen, but I failed and tried again, repeatedly, for years before I became reasonably consistent.
I fail at being loving and compassionate to myself sometimes. But I don’t give up.
I fail at being a patient and present dad and husband, especially when life gets busy. But I continue to try, and sometimes, I’ve been told, I’m the best dad and husband in the world.
I’ve made three attempts at writing the article you’re reading now, and scrapped it entirely the first two times because it didn’t feel right. And yet, I started again, and obviously I’m done now.
When I try over and over again, I succeed in the long run.
And if you try over and over again, you will succeed too.
You may not succeed in the exact way you hoped you would, within the exact timeframe you hoped you would, but you will learn and grow from your experiences and failures, and you will be better off in the end.
More than anything else, here’s what you need to be willing to fail at to succeed in life:
1. You have to be willing to fail at the original plan.
Life is full of screw-ups. You’re supposed to fail sometimes. It’s a required part of the human learning process.
I’ve learned [Read more…]