The longer I write and think about things the less fear of failure impacts my life. It is still there and springs up uninvited on occasion, but it does not have the power it once had. There are so many things that can get done and life can become so meaningful when you finally let go of negativity. Your dreams will take a step towards you if you commit your time and find the discipline to follow them.
Having a fear of failure is very natural. After all failure doesn’t feel so hot and we’ve all been there, praying never to be there again. Fear serves a very important task. It is there and asks if we really want what we say we want. Do we really want to go where we say we want to go? And a we want an infinite many things our natural sense of fear acts like King Solomon, dividing and sifting through out intent. When we overcome our fears, whatever they may be, we prove to ourselves that we truly wanted it.
Your fear of failure helps you to prepare. Those butterflies in your stomach and those thoughts of doom help you to go over every possible scenario that you don’t wish to engage in. They help you to prepare or just as well, they help you to quick because you’re not ready. And there is nothing wrong with not being ready. Success is not wishful thinking. Dreams are not fairy dust and unicorns.
Fear helps you to prepare and there sometimes you will find yourself having made a mistake. You will overcome your fear only to fail, but that is where you want to be. Where you don’t want to be is sitting back, wondering, and pointing in the direction you want to go. You want to find the courage to go and failing to get there becomes step one.
The next step is to find out why it is we failed. Were we not prepared enough? Did we try too hard? Did we not try enough? Was it the wrong time? Not enough resources? Not enough help? What was it? Why didn’t it work.
Failure allows you to ask the right questions, questions that can only come when you grapple with your fears and leap forward despite of them.
So don’t fear terrible or get discouraged when you feel afraid. You are gloriously human and this is where you are supposed to be. Fear is infinitely better than a sense of malaise or indifference towards living. Fear is a sign that you’re up to something. So get at it and finish what you started. Plan, prepare, execute, and reap the rewards and do it again. Or plan, prepare, execute, have your ass crash haphazardly to the ground, get up, learn from it and do it all over again.
It’s the same formula, give or take a step or two because success and failure are brother and sister. Failure always walk ever so closely behind success. Either one will get you where you wish to go, except one arrives earlier and the other one a touch later.
No matter. Do not fear failure. Don’t let it stop you from what you want and dream of. Your fear is an indication of great things to come, and if not today, than tomorrow.
Cover photo generously provided by photographer Jeremy Bishop via unsplash.com
