Over the last few years I have had a rather interesting relationship with the word "failure."
Until graduating college the most notable or upsetting failures were not getting onto the varsity football cheerleading squad in high school and getting a C+ in Accounting. Talking about being crushed! Traumatic...I know.
After leaving college and moving half way across the country, it seemed like failing was ALL I was doing. I felt like I was failing in my career, romantic relationships and just overall in life.
I was floundering around in my company applying for any job because I disliked what I was doing. Instead of landing a better job all I had to show for myself was four “failed” attempts at getting a promotion. I decided to leave my company for another opportunity that did not work out and was briefly unemployed. I was meeting the wrong types of guys and it felt like one failed relationship after another ending in tears.
What was unknown to me at the time were these supposed “failures” lead me to make monumental changes in my life and I would NEVER be the same. My failures caused me to search for something more, something deeper, and something real. A love for myself and a deeper level of happiness in my life.
My journey to find happiness and self-love was life changing. In fact, it was the reason I decided to start my own business as a Life Coach. I felt that I had grown and learned so much that I wanted to share my knowledge and practices to help other women make positive changes in their lives.
As any entrepreneur, including myself, will tell you, failing in business is inevitable. You will experience failure and lots of it! In fact, I have “failed” more being an entrepreneur than anything else.
I have had many sales calls where prospects said no, webinars with technical glitches, emails I sent out too soon with wrong attachments, times I was not making the kind of money I wanted to be making, etc. etc.
Fail, fail, fail!
For a while this failure really bothered me. It got me down, feeling uninspired, second guessing myself, and not wanting to move forward. In fact there were days it felt so crippling I did not want to get out of bed.
Not too long ago, an interesting video showed up on my Facebook newsfeed. It was about failure. I have heard many clichés about failure and always brushed them off. In fact, almost every time I have royally failed in my business my fiancé would tell me something similar to cheer me up, but I didn’t really believe him.
In the moment I saw that video, I was ready to hear it. The message felt like it was speaking right to me. I have since let it marinate and turned it into my new slogan.
I now understand that failure is OKAY. I do not enjoy it per se, but I know that EVERYONE will fail in some capacity. Some of the most successful people we know have had epic "failures."
According to Business Insider, J.K. Rowlings was a single mother on welfare when she started writing "Harry Potter." Oprah Winfrey was fired from her first job as a TV anchor and Lady Gaga was dropped by her record label after 3 months! What sets these incredible women apart is what they did after those moments of failure. It is not failure itself but how you react to failure that determines the outcome you will achieve.
If you have a goal and know exactly how you’re going to achieve it, it's not a big enough goal. That is one thing I didn't realize or learn during my childhood. Setting goals was something I have always done and I always set goals knowing how I could achieve them.
Owning a business and working to make a difference in the world was one goal I didn't know how I was going to achieve but had faith that I would. When you have FAITH, even the most far out dreams are possible. When you have FAITH, your failures do not seem like the end of the world but rather a stepping stone along the way.
That is one thing I am beginning to master after all these years…FAITH. With faith amazing things are happening. I am attracting more people, resources, and money. I am becoming more confident in myself and my message and in turn more successful. With faith I have absolute trust I am being guided and I will succeed at whatever life puts in front of me.
You see, here is the crazy thing about people who aren’t afraid to fail…their success in inevitable. With each failure they learn, they grown, and they move forward. Each time, one step closer to their goals.
Those who are too afraid to begin because they do not want to fail stay EXACTY where they are…in their comfort zone. Extraordinary things do not happen in your comfort zone. Miracles do not happen in your comfort zone.
Do you feel like you are currently failing miserably in one or more areas of your life?
It’s okay, TRUST me.
Today, I encourage you to look at your failures without judgement. Without failure there would be no contrast. Without contrast it would be harder to know what you really want.
You are closer to success than you even realize. By taking the time to read this post it is evident you are on a path toward self-improvement.
You got this!
Here's to a new perspective on failure.
With Love and Gratitude,