Most of us dread making mistakes or failing at something. Well, there really is no such thing as failure.
This notion is not new and quotes and sayings from thousands of years ago can attest that failure and success are simply two sides of the same coin.
So why is it that most of us quit along the way? What about the idea of mistake or failure is so scary that we will do just about anything – like procrastinating, self-sabotage or enduring severe corporate stress – to avoid it?
My theory is that we hang on to mistakes as a negative because that is what we have learned to do.
Watch a small child – he or she will do things despite the possibility of making a mistake or failing. If there is a glitch on their path, they pause, learn, dust themselves off and move on.
But over time, we adults have learned to judge ‘mistake’ as a negative. In actuality, it is neither negative nor positive. It is simply part of the natural order. Like yin and yang, birth and death, happy and sad.
There is no need to fear making a mistake. It is part of a process that has been going on since time began and will continue long after you are gone.
Action – Recall a recent so-called failure. Pause your negative thoughts about it. What is available for you to learn?
Now, dust yourself off and move on.
And remember, as Winston Churchill said – Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.