You know how success coaches and such tend to repeat the mantra:
“If you want to succeed, double your rate of failure.”
There IS a seed of truth in that, but it can easily derail you. I’ll explain.
photo credit: Alex E. Proimos
Failure is NOT the point. Failure can be a terrible teacher, unless you’re very careful, very lucky, and very AWAKE. For many people, failure can be crushing.
What then, IS the point?
The point is, if you’re engaged in an activity aimed at achieving something… whether you succeed or fail, at least it shows you’ve begun your journey!
Most people who claim they’ve failed at something – say, creating an online business – haven’t really honestly tried.
If I were to ask you to point out the things you actually did and failed at, would you be able to do so?
This is often where there’s a blank stare as the respondent’s mind skips a few beats as they realize they just thought about doing it.
Did you REALLY put pen to paper creating a product, instead of just hashing out ideas for it?
Did you REALLY install that membership software and do your best creating a site, or did you stop at the thought of it?
Did you REALLY try to write that sales letter the best you can, or did you just discourage yourself from doing it?
It’s really strange but I’ve caught many clients in this predicament, and myself at times for sure as well. Progressively less so, though, fortunately.
Isn’t it strange how we sometimes trick ourselves to not risk failure just to preserve some modicum of self-respect?
The next time you need to start something unpleasant or something you feel you’re not good enough to do, not quite ready or so… do it anyway, not to fail fast but to enjoy stepping into the journey. The rest gets easier as you go along.
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