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Why Failure Can Be Good For You

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On the face of it, failure is not something most of us want to aim for. In fact, most of us are hardwired from a young age to avoid failure. That failure is inherently bad, wrong, or undesirable and that failure is the antithesis of success. However, when you take a look at what failure really is, it’s often the case that the opposite is true; there would be no success without failure.

As the wise and immensely talented Samuel Beckett wrote, ‘Ever tried. Ever failed. No matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail better.’ It’s a quote that’s stuck with us here at mojo&co and is deeply profound, especially to anyone who has every failed, which of course applies to us all!  In fact, many of the world’s most successful people in all walks of life from business to sport, to literature, science and politics have all had multiple failures in their lives.

Famous failures

Bestselling author J.K Rowling of Harry Potter fame had her manuscript rejected from multiple publishing houses before achieving success. She speaks about the experience often and agrees that it helped shape her and gave her the determination to carry on. She said; “failure is so important. We speak about success all the time. It is the ability to resist failure or use failure that often leads to greater success. I’ve met people who don’t want to try for fear of failing.”

Thomas Edison, the man who invented the light bulb along with many other things, reportedly failed thousands of times before having his eureka moment.

Albert Einstein. His name is synonymous with genius and is still considered to have been one of the most famous minds in the world. However, he was not seen a success as a young child. In fact, he did not begin to speak until he was four and was labelled as ‘slow’ in school and was not perceived as a model student in university either.

Three reasons why failure is good for you

Resilience

All of those famous names who went through failures in their lives have one thing in common. They never gave up. Failure makes us hugely resilient. We try again until we get it right. When you look at small babies and toddlers, you see how often they try to complete a task. They may fail hundreds of times but are rarely put off. They simply keep trying thanks to their endless reserves of pure determination. They have not been told by society that failure is wrong. In fact, they know that failure is just a step on the way to success. This frame of mind is one many of us as adults could do with tapping into. Indeed, our mojo&co journals are perfect for helping you put your failures into perspective and allowing yourself the time and space to acknowledge them and move on.

Banish Fear

Fear is something many of us live with in our lives and it is one of the greatest barriers to success. Fear of failing or getting something wrong can often hold us back in so many ways. The saying goes, ‘feel the fear and do it anyway,’ and it is so true. Once you’ve failed at something and you realise the world didn’t stop turning and the sky didn’t fall in, you’ll understand that the only thing you were afraid of was the fear itself, not the actual failure. It’s ultimately freeing and will help you try and push yourself to achieve your goals.

Learning

The biggest thing you’ll ever take away from a failure, is a lesson. It may not always be the easiest thing to keep in mind at the time, but whenever I have a failure and I have many, I try and look at what I’ve learned. Almost always there is something to be gained and once you come around to view failure in this regard, you’ll start to change your entire mindset. Our mojo&co guided journals are the ideal companion to help you jot down your learning and help you keep sight of your goals.

If you’d like to know more about our collection of beautiful, guided journals and letter writing sets, then why not head over to our online store www.mojoandco.ie or feel free to contact us info@mojoandco.ie.

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