Dealing with Failure

“No human ever became interesting by not failing. The more you fail and recover and improve, the better you are as a person. Ever met someone who’s always had everything work out for them with zero struggle? They usually have the depth of a puddle. Or they don’t exist.” - Chris Hardwick

I’m enthusiastic. I love to be associated with success. I like to meet expectations. I just didn’t know if I could stand failing. I was afraid.

I prayed and studied and kept hoping every day. I told myself that I had to pass all five of my exams. I felt that was it. Probably if I cleared them all in one sitting, I’d be more satisfied and approved of.

Well, I failed one and it hit me.

It hurt a lot and I felt like giving up. When I got home, I cried about it but my parents tried to cheer me up. My brother wanted us to celebrate. My friends were congratulating me. Honestly, at that point, I felt they were all crazy or something…

In the healing process, I became grateful. I actually passed four out of five and they were really tough. I also began to reflect on the times that I failed and fought back to get on top of my game. 

Never dwell on your failures. It’s difficult to create momentum when you’re stuck in the past. The fact that you failed at something doesn’t define you. It simply means that you’re learning. Also, never compare.

Let go of the need to get other people’s approval. Most of my fears were actually driven by that. It’s great to be admired but beyond that, it’s just low self-esteem.

Call a spade a spade. Learn from your failures and get to the root of it. Ask important questions like ‘Why did I fail?’ not ‘What if?’ Obsessing over it won’t change the result. Keep showing up every day. Keep at it. You’re well on your way to success.

This time around I’m going to face my fears, register for that exam and study hard. I hope I make it this time.

"If they fall, they will not stay down, because the LORD will help them up." (Psalm 37:24, GNT)