In the wise words of Hannah Montana, “Everybody makes mistakes. Everybody has those days.” She’s right, we all do! I’m not going to sit here and tell you that failure always feels great because that’s just not true. Although it definitely can feel like the end of the world sometimes, it’s not something to be scared of.
Failure can be as simple as getting a bad grade on a test to as extreme as going through a bad breakup. Regardless of the degree of your failure, there’s a lesson to be learned. Sure, no one wants to fail a class or break up with their “true love” (he wasn’t THE ONE, shocker). But think about this: failing that test pointed out the topics you obviously needed to work on more. And better yet, breaking up with that gross boy from Horan that lived down the hall your freshman year taught you to now pay attention to the red flags in a guy BEFORE you date them and waste six more months of your life.
That’s the beauty of failing. Ninety-nine percent of the time failure makes you better in some way. When you fail, you usually feel the urge to find a solution or fix to your problem. You immediately open up your brain to new ideas that you didn’t have before. If you never failed, who knows if those ideas would’ve ever surfaced in your brain? This is just an opportunity to grow and improve in some aspect of your life.
So how exactly does failure lead us to success? Since success looks different for everyone, there’s no guarantee that failure will automatically deem you “successful”, but there is a guarantee that failure will make you better in some area of your life. Failure forces you to see what you’re capable of, which ultimately will be a good asset to have in your back pocket for any future endeavors life throws at you. If you aren’t failing at something, you’re probably not setting high enough expectations for yourself. You’re letting yourself off easy and honestly, you’re just being instead of living. Where’s the fun in that? Pushing yourself to achieve goals that are on the brink of failure will lead you to excellence that’s beyond your current reach. With more knowledge, you’ll be able to eventually reach those things that are out of your grasp right now.
Basically what I’m trying to say is: the more you fail, the more you learn. If you learn to handle failure in one area of your life, chances are that you’ll take your newfound knowledge and apply it to other areas as well. Stop being scared to fail! You’re in control of your own life and it’s up to you to do what it takes to lead yourself to your own personal success. Travel the road of failure with excitement! One day you’ll have learned so much from your mistakes that nothing will be able to get in your way. Don’t let fear stop you from living your life, mistakes and all. Take some risks, Jaspers!