Don’t be afraid to fail. Embrace the feelings that come with setback and learn how to improve.
Have you ever held back on doing something because you feared failure? Most people have! Let’s face it; no one likes to fail. None of us likes to feel like we’re ineffective, weak, or lacking, and that’s precisely how failure makes us feel.
However, you may be surprised that failure doesn’t exist until YOU say it does. In the dictionary, failure has several definitions:
- failing to do or perform
- a state of inability to perform a normal function adequately
- fracturing or giving way under stress
- a lack of success.
Look carefully at those definitions, and you’ll probably realize they have one thing in common when it comes to goal achievement:
Failure is a PERCEPTION.
If you believe you have failed, then you have. If you think you can’t succeed, then you don’t. If you feel you can’t handle the pressure of achieving your goals, you can’t. If you think you’re not successful, you aren’t. Failure only exists in your own mind! Failure is born when you decide to give up or stop working toward your goals.
But what if you never do that? What if you continue working toward your goals, one step at a time, for as long as it takes? There’s no failure then, is there?
This insight should be very encouraging if you’ve been working toward goals and not yet seeing positive results. Keep going, and you cannot fail!
Here are three tips to help you stay strong and focused on your goals:
Never give yourself an out
Most people do this without even realizing it. They are willing to work hard to achieve their goals until the going gets too rough or their motivation dwindles.
Don’t do that! Commit to making your goals happen, no matter what! Never quit, contemplate admitting failure, and lose your inner determination.
Don’t get hooked on a specific timeframe for completion.
It’s okay to set a general timeline, but be aware that some circumstances will be beyond your control, so you can’t say when your goal will be achieved.
If you do that, you’re just setting yourself up for failure! Instead, get a general idea of when you’d like your goal to be completed, but then take it a day at a time and focus on making progress, not reaching the finish line in as little time as possible.
Finally, be sure that you don’t view obstacles and setbacks as failures.
The two are entirely different. An obstacle, setback, or delay means only one thing: it’s not time for your goal to be completed yet. That’s it. It doesn’t mean you have failed; it doesn’t mean you’re weak; it doesn’t mean you’ll never achieve your goals. It simply means you’re not done yet and have more to do. You’ve got to keep moving forward and find a way around or through the obstacle.
Stay motivated and give yourself space to have setbacks. Re-examine the process, learn more if you have to, and ask for help if needed. You can obtain any goal if you don’t give up on yourself. So don’t.
It’s been a joy, thanks for reading. Connect with me here let’s network: @modern.therapist