How Your Failure Leads to Success

Think of the last time you failed. I’m talking face down, down-and-out, complete and utter disaster-type failure. The last thing you probably felt at that point was that failure leads to success.

After all, failure is literally a word that we use to describe a lack of success. So how can failure lead to success?

Overcoming failure to find growth opportunities is something that we are passionate about at Joyful Through It All. We believe this is one of the keys to living a life that is full of big goals and dream chasing. And understanding and overcoming failure is all part of it!

The truth is that failure only prevents us from succeeding if we let it. And for many of us, this is what happens! The going gets tough, and we give up.

But when you quit in the face of failure, you only get to see the first half of the story. And when you understand how to work with failure, the ending of the story is the best part!

How Failure Leads to Success

So how does failure lead to success? How is it possible that not succeeding can lead to succeeding?

The trick is using a powerful three-letter word to change the way you see failures that you experience. When you fail, it is because something that you did isn’t quite good enough…yet.

There is a secret power in the word ‘yet’ that transforms the way we think about failure. The word yet tells us that there is still hope for us after failure. It gives us a pathway out of the failure, toward success.

Without a pathway out, it is easy to be defined by your failure. Doing this can make you want to give up on something that could lead you toward your greatest successes.

So try it! Next time you fail, or aren’t ‘good enough‘, try sticking the word yet to the end of your thoughts. You will be amazed at just how powerful this three-letter word is!

Emotions and Failure: Can Failure Lead to Success?

Can failure lead to success? Absolutely! With the right attitude and an understanding of the emotions that come with failure, you can still reach the heights that you dream of.

The unfortunate truth is that many people skip this ‘yet’ part of the failure process. The feelings and emotions that we experience during failure can be so powerfully negative that they drive us right back to the safety of our comfort zones.

Instead of seeing the potential of yet, it is easy to get caught up in shame and humiliation of our failures in the now.

Now, some failures are so bad that a little bit of comfort zone is just what we need. And that is fine!

But while you are enjoying your safe, comfortable, and failure-free space, it is important to start planning how you are going to leave that comfort zone and try again!

An important part of this is learning to own the emotions that you feel when you fail. Make them part of your story. Feel them, wrestle with them, and learn from them. You can learn a lot about yourself from your emotions that will help you do better next time.

And there will be a next time!

Learning From Failure

If you want to see how failure leads to success, it is important not to skip over the most important part of failing. We like to skip over what failure can teach us because it doesn’t feel good.

Failure is essentially really brutal, honest, and painful feedback. And feedback is designed to tell us how we can improve. The problem is, our ego gets in the way and we start to equate feedback with criticism.

If you are someone who struggles with a fixed mindset, criticism isn’t something you like to hear. Criticism tells you that you have flaws, and if you are a fixed mindset person, flaws stick with you forever!

Developing the willingness to listen to the feedback that failure provides requires a growth mindset.

A growth mindset is a way of thinking that allows you to see setbacks, struggles, obstacles, and failure as opportunities for growth. This is one of the key differences between a fixed mindset and a growth mindset.

So instead of taking criticism personally, a growth mindset allows you to be honest with yourself and your areas of growth. Failure is only going to show you where those areas are so that you can improve for next time!

How Failure Leads to Success: My First Big Failure

One of my first ‘real’ high-stakes failures is the one that showed me how failure leads to success.

I was fresh out of university and was interviewing for a teaching position. While I knew I was the right candidate for the job, I hadn’t had much practice with job interviews, and they made me incredibly nervous.

I mustered up all the courage I could to showcase just how great I was. Until I started talking and just lost it all.

When I found out I was unsuccessful, I spiralled into a pretty terrible emotional rut. As a perfectionist, failure is a hard pill for me to swallow. Add in failing while being vulnerable, and you have a recipe for disaster.

But, I ended up reaching out to the interviewer to ask for feedback on my interview. I learned a lot that I ended up carrying forward to another interview.

That next interview ended up being the teaching job I held for 5 years before leaving the profession. At the time, quitting teaching felt like a failure also. But, I managed to use everything I learned from that experience to help me find work I am truly passionate about.

In the end, failure leads to success if you let it take you there!

What Can You Learn From Failure?

The world does a pretty good job at making us think that failure is the end of the road and that failure leads to success is a lie.

Because of this, it can be hard to even want to try to reach big goals out of the fear of failing. The world makes us feel like mistakes are things to be ashamed of, and that anything less than perfection is seen as unacceptable.

But failure is a great teacher. Some say that failure is the mother of success. If we allow it to, it can nurture us and help us grow toward our greatest successes.

It is time for you to start owning your failures rather than running from them. Take the time to wrestle with the emotions you feel during your next failure and actively seek growth opportunities. This is how you are going to get control over your story.

It hurts when we show up as our true authentic selves and fall flat. But running from the failure is not the answer! Never give up after failing. This is the only way you can truly fail.

If you are looking for more inspiration to help carry you through life’s obstacles, check out our collection of motivational quotes about struggle in life!

Don’t forget to share this post with your friends and family on social media! If you know someone who is working through a failure, this post could be just what they need to make a major change!

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