QUOTE
Failure is simply the opportunity to begin again, this time more intelligently.
~ Henry Ford
OVERCOMING FAILURE: 7 STEPS TO TAKE WHEN YOU FAIL
Do you want to pursue your dreams? If so, I am 99.99% sure that,
somewhere along the way, you’re going to fail.Failure in some form is an
inevitable - sometimes even beneficial - part of the path to success.
Whether that failure is debilitating or simply another step in the journey
is up to you. Here are seven steps to help you put the failure in perspective,
make the most of your "investment," and feel inspired to pick up and try
again.
Stop and breathe
The first step is just to stop. Take a breath. Resist the temptation to go into reactive mode. The more grounded and centered you are, the better equipped you’ll be for the next steps. If it’s a really big face splat, this might look like stepping back for a longer period of time so you can get some perspective.
Get real
Many of us take an isolated instance and spin it into a story that defines who we are, what we’re capable of, and what the world has to offer. Spend some time checking out your story about the failure. Is it triggering any unrealistically broad judgments? Are you making always/never statements? (I always screw up. I never get it right. I don’t have what it takes.)
The unreality of those stories can be one of your biggest obstacles, and also a big fat lie. Think of it this way. Regardless of how you feel about it in the moment, failure is an event, not an identity.
Think of it this way. Is it realistic that, given more information/insight, you would have done something different and possibly succeeded? If that is in fact a possibility, then your failure was situational, not identity-based.
Evaluate and learn
Nobody sets out to fail, but once that failure is in the rear view mirror, you can think of it as an investment. Whether you actually profit from that investment depends on whether or not you learn from it.
It’s tempting to play ostrich and stick your head in the sand when you fail. But at best that will rob you of that potential insight. At worst, it condemns you to repeat the failure.
Take stock of the situation. Ask, “What happened? What can I learn? What factor or factors led to this failure? What could I have changed? What could I have done differently? What insight or knowledge or skill am I missing?” Make a list of key learnings.
Reconnect with the dream
While it’s important to learn from your failure, it’s also important to feed the fire of desire to pick up and try again. Take a look at the big picture. Remind yourself of why you made the attempt in the first place. What was the big picture vision you were moving towards? Why is that important? What feels meaningful about it?
Reach out
Reach out for support. The kind of support you need will vary depending on the situation, of course. It might be simply having someone to vent to, to use as a sounding board, or to offer emotional support to help reinforce your belief in yourself and your vision.
Or that support could be knowledge-based. Maybe you need a mentor to help guide you through the blind spots, or perhaps you should hire an expert to help you with some of the areas you are weak in.
Ask yourself, “What help do I need? Where can I find it?”
Find answers
Go back to the results of your evaluation of what happened and start filling in the blanks. What knowledge were you missing that led to the failure? Where can you find it? What support were you missing? How can you incorporate it? The goal here is to do the work that really does make the failure a stepping stone to what’s next.
Try again
Without this step, failure really is failure. Trying again might be attempting the exact same thing again, better prepared this time, or it might look like trying something completely new. Keep moving in a conscious, purposeful way in a direction that matters to you.
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