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Failures are common in life. As long as you choose to take action and work on your goals, failures are inevitable. Nobody is perfect and no one can go through life without anticipating any failure. Albert Einstein said it wisely, “A person who never made a mistake never tried anything new.”
So, let’s face it, failures are the norm of life. The problem is that most people choose to give up and then they fail. Only those who choose to learn from their failures, transform themselves to do better, and begin again are the ones who truly make it in the end.
So what should you do when you fail? Here are the 5 great suggestions:
1. Remember why you started in the first place
You have to always remember your purpose. Why do you do it in the first place? Most people give up when they fail because they don’t have a strong and emotional purpose behind their goals.
When you have an empowering reason to support why you do what you do, you will become unstoppable. Giving up will never be an option for you because you have a clear purpose.
Remember, it is your “why” that drives you. Like what Napoleon Hill said, “Definiteness of purpose is the starting point from which one must begin.”
When there is a will, there will always be a way. Hence, your purpose behind what you do is your driving force. When you have a strong reason to do something, you will never back out. However, when the reason is weak, you will make excuses and not do it.
Thus, when you face tough times or when you fail at something, remind yourself of your purpose. Why do you choose to do it in the first place? Let your reasons drive you through the hardships and keep moving forward.
2. Reframe your failures into feedback
Do you know that failures are something that you must encounter if you want to succeed in whatever project you do? A lot of people have the misconception to think that failure is the opposite of success, which is wrong.
Failure is on the same side of success. When you fail, you learn. You gain better experience and that makes you wiser. But if you have never gone through any failure, you will never learn and you will never improve.
Tony Robbins, on success ,once said, “Success in life is the result of good judgment. Good judgment is usually the result of experience. And experience is usually the result of bad judgment.” In other words, you cannot achieve success without failures.
Besides that, you have to understand that failure is not a person, but an event. When you fail, it does not mean that you are a failure. It simply means that you fail at that particular attempt.
And hence, you must learn to reframe the meaning of failure to feedback. It is either you succeed, or you learn. There is no failure.
3. Seek a better solution or approach
Most people seem to have forgotten that they have to fight a battle more than once to win. They thought that success is something that will come to them overnight or with one attempt.
Like a baby learns to walk. She will fall many times before she learns the proper to stand and to walk steadily. Therefore, when you fail, seek a better approach or a more effective solution.
It does not mean that you should stop once you fail. Perhaps, the way you are doing something is not right. For example, when you bake a cake, you probably fail in the first try. But you can choose to try again and improve your recipe. As long as you continue to try and improve your recipe, you will eventually get the right cake that you want.
It is the same in life. You have to always seek a better solution so that you can produce better results.
4. Recharge by getting away
Sometimes, it is better to give yourself a break and just walk away after a big failure you encounter. Taking a break gives you time to relax and recharge your body, mind, and soul.
When you are tense and stressed, it is difficult to think clearly. Even if you push yourself, it will be difficult to see the big picture and find the right solution to your problem or failure. Hence, taking a break may be a good idea.
Do you know that most of the creative solutions come when people are at rest? Like how Archimedes discovered the water displacement theory, he was resting and taking a bath when the idea came to him.
So take a break. Spend an hour with nature, take a short trip out of town, take a quick nap, or exercise. You will discover that your failure becomes less significant after the break.
5. Begin again, wiser this time
The only way to go through failure is to begin again. Now that you have gained the experience and you know what will not work, so try again with a different and a better approach.
Remember, your past does not equal your future. Meaning, it does not matter if you fail a moment ago or a minute ago. You can start again right at this moment and create a new ending. If you fail right now, it does not mean that you will fail again in the next moment. You just need to try again.
The majority is afraid to try again because they have been conditioned by their past mistakes and failures. They thought that they have failed before and so they may fail again if they choose to do it again. This is not true at all.
“Never let the fear of striking out hold you back,” said Babe Ruth. And he also continued to say, “Every strike brings me closer to the next home run.”
If you want to hit a home run, you must continue to strike and never let your fear of failure holds you back.
Related: What Does it Really Mean to Fail?
This is a guest post by Shawn Lim
Want to discover the secrets to unleashing your potential and live a great and successful life? Follow Shawn Lim on his blog, StunningMotivation.com. You can also download his guidebook, Active Goal Setting and make your dreams a reality. Or simply follow him on Facebook.