Who loves to fail? No one! And it’s no wonder. Whether it is a job or a business or a sales opportunity, failing sucks. It is embarrassing and horrible. And failing goes and makes matters even worse by forcing us to do two things no normal person would ever willingly do on their own: confront our mistakes and then learn from them.
But, let’s be honest, we learn nothing from our victories. We usually just accept them without a second thought. But stick any of us with failure and we’ll screech right to a halt. However, when we look back at past defeats, we must admit, that we should learn to embrace failure. Here’s why.
1. Failing will force us to determine what went wrong.
We do this all the time. But it doesn’t have to be an exercise in beating ourselves up. We may even discover that the outcome wasn’t our fault after all and that we would have failed no matter what we might have done.
2. Failing will force us to make important life decisions.
Sometimes our analysis reveals that we failed because we just didn’t want it enough. Or that we were unwilling to make the sacrifices required. If we weren’t willing, then perhaps this was not our true calling, and we may find we are oddly OK with that. Failure brings clarity. And we should change our path if it is not the right one.
“I have failed over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.”
-Michael Jordan
3. Failing will force us to improve.
Instead of breaking our will, an embarrassing setback can harden it into titanium and give us the determination to do whatever it takes to achieve our final objective. Failures in such cases are usually due more to a lack of skill level than to a lack of commitment. But this is where the pain of a loss can become our friend. Our residual pain relentlessly reminds us about past humiliations until we acquire the expertise we need to set them right. Refusing to let us quit on ourselves—or our dreams—until we finally savor that sweet taste of victory.
4. Failing will help us take more risks.
Starting something new knowing that we will eventually either come out on top or become better from the experience will reduce our reluctance to proceed. In return, this will encourage us to take more risks in the future.
Our success ultimately hinges on how well we overcome the setbacks that come our way. We’ve all heard “adversity builds character,” but honestly, adversity doesn’t build character, it reveals it.
And it will reveal yours. Let’s learn to embrace the value that failure can bring.