Dealing with FAILURE
Success is not absolute, it is relative. You can boast of your success to one person while being referred to as a complete failure by another. To tackle this issue, people have come up with various solutions. For instance, to save himself from embarrassment, a self-proclaimed successful person is more likely to live amongst those who HE thinks are losers. But in this process, he fails to realise that his successful image will forever be limited to that particular group of people. Now while some may find it amusing, I find it rather innovative. After all, in this competitive world, he has managed to keep himself much more happier than people who are actually much more successful than him.
While this trick works wonders for some people, others may find it difficult to accept the fact that they are still at the bottom of the success ladder. This ladder, though imaginary, has a significant impact on the minds of people. They tend to think that their inability to climb to the top defines them. This brings us to our theme; “Dealing with FAILURE”.
Success can take you to cloud nine whereas failure is a phenomenon that basically brings you back to where you started. To avoid discontentment, one should expect and prepare for failure while setting an aim. It won’t come as a shocker if you are ready for it. Even as it comes to you, do not let it hit you hard enough to rip apart your future hopes. Failure gives you a chance to discover more efficient ways of achieving a milestone. It allows you to make amends and apply them to all future tasks. A defeat surely pushes you back but at the same time, it encourages you to try harder. Most people refuse to try again after their first collapse which only takes away their confidence and makes them vulnerable to failures in future. A cricket team for instance, cannot always win when it steps on the field, but it comes out with the same spirit every time. Things will not always go your way, you have to learn to adapt.
Failure is the first step towards learning. Someone who succeeds in the first attempt will never be able to discover the intricacies of a task. American inventor Thomas A. Edison failed several thousand times before inventing the light bulb and he acknowledged it upfront by saying; “I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.”
There is competition in every field, whether it be education, sports or politics. When you are competing with thousands out there, you should know that however hard you might have tried, there is always a chance that you won’t make it. Someone, somewhere is always a notch better and you have to learn to live with it. Remember, winning doesn’t matter, participating does. A marathon has only one winner, but several participants. Each one starts with a hope of winning it which is all that matters. Cling to hope and you will win someday.
Pressure of success is a prevalent issue amongst youngsters. Succeed for yourself and not for others. You have to learn to define success yourself and avoid going by someone else’s definition of it. There are always people around us who set the bar high, but don’t try to reach their bar, set your own. If your idea of success is to be a manager, be it. Don’t let others influence your idea, else you may never be satisfied in your quest for success. There is always someone who is above you, don’t be intimidated. The day you become the best version of yourself, you will find peace.
