The worst fear of a majority of people is ‘Failure’. I’m sure a lot of us here have decided not to try anything at all because of the fear of failing at it. A lot of times people subconsciously undermine their capabilities to avoid failure. The harsh reality is, its impossible to live life without experiencing failure. Even the most brilliant person on this planet would have faced failure at least once in his lifetime.
On the brighter side, a good thing about failure is that it’s entirely up to you how you take it. There are two ways of looking at failure; you can either see it as the end of the word, or a life changing learning experience.
By choosing the latter you can learn from your failures and become successful with time. Failure is a comma not a full stop.How do you turn failure into success? You’ll find the answer for this question in this article. By the end of this article you will learn how to overcome failure and achieve success,’ The following 10 steps can help you turn failure into opportunity:
Accepting Failure and letting it go:
A lot of people fail to accept the fact that things didn’t work out as planned. It’s very important to acknowledge and accept the fact that things did not work. . No matter how difficult it is, take responsibility for your failure and let it motivate you to improve and work harder next time.
A failed attempt in the past shouldn’t stop you from trying out new ideas and ventures.Take some time off.
It’s totally okay to take some time off after you’ve failed at a particular project or business plan. Failure can be very stressful and its necessary to take a break and clear your head. You may go on a picnic or a tour or spend some quality time with friends and family. Don’t feel guilty for taking a break soon after failing at something. Take a break for a day or two and introspect. Refresh your mind to gain the right perspective to see things clearly.
3. Understand where you went wrong.
Go back and investigate the mistakes you’ve made. A very crucial step that will help you to turn your failure into success is to identify your own mistakes. Making mistakes is okay but when you repeat them, its not.
For example: If a business plan of yours failed, ask yourself why this happened? Did you target the right audience? Was the cost of production high? Did you fail to advertise it? List down all the problems you analysed and try coming up with solution for each of these problems.
4. Learn from the mistakes you made.
An optimistic person would see failure as a wonderful opportunity to learn and grow. Nobody can succeed if they remain stagnant. Growth comes from learning from each of your mistakes and making sure you don’t repeat them again. Failure gives you an opportunity to learn, grow and flourish. So, go back and learn from the mistakes you made. Make sure you learn your lessons once and forever.
5. Be clear about what you want.
Being aware of what exactly you want is a very important step to begin with. You cannot succeed unless you have a fair idea about what you want to achieve. There’s a thin line between what you want to achieve and what the others expect you to achieve. Take a note of your long-term and short-term goals.
While setting goals for yourself make sure that your goals are realistic and achievable. Identify your strengths or take guidance from your mentor or a professional when you’re setting your goals.
6. Keep an open mind and try doing things differently.
Be open to new ideas and try seeing things in a different perspective. In order to move from failure to success its essential to be open and less rigid. There is no one way of doing things.
The strategies and plans that worked for you previously might not work for your current project. Maybe the other ways of doing things could give you a different perspective and help you achieve success this time.
7. Be open to constructive criticism.
We often learn about our mistakes through constructive criticism. Without constructive criticism it becomes difficult to improve. Most of us get defensive when we’re criticised because of which we miss out on very important insights. You should graciously accept such criticism and work on it. Having said that, you must ignore the people who criticize your work to demean you or bring you down.
8. Maintain consistency.
Nobody can achieve success from failure overnight. You have to be consistent and determined when you’re working towards your goal. Whenever you feel like giving up, dust yourself and get back to work. To see consistent results, consistent hard work and inputs are essential. Consistency is often underrated. Nobody can succeed in life without being consistent in what they do.
9. Don’t hesitate to ask for help.
A lot of times, we are stuck at one place, with one idea; failure keeping us stuck in our old ways. Even the best of us need support to get past these hurdles. You can always look for a mentor, friend or a professional who has the experience to guide you and show you the right path. A different approach or perspective can add a lot of value.
10. Believe in yourself!
The final yet most important step towards success is believing in yourself. Unless you believe that you can overcome failure, nothing will change. Many famous athletes who failed at first, never stopped believing in themselves.
Don’t let the fear of failure stop you from achieving your goals. Take full control of your mind and make things happen.