Dealing With Failure 101

“To succeed in your mission, you must have a single-minded devotion to your goal.” - Dr. A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

Every person in this universe had a goal in life, a dream. It could be a dream job, economic stability, a wish to go on adventures, to travel, to simply live life to the fullest. There is no dearth of dreams in our minds and we all strive to fulfil them. The drive towards ultimate satisfaction compels us to work hard to our personal goals. However, as it is said,

‘Rome was not built in a day’

Success is not a one-shot story. Success requires hard work, diligence, dedication and perseverance. And before any form of success, a person must go through obstacles, multiple obstacles going by the names of rejection and failure.

Rejection and failure are two greatly feared demons, often attacking us in the most bewildering manners possible. No matter how hard one tries, they cannot be prepared for it and often results in disheartening dispositions. It can come in many forms – a failed relationship, losing your dream job, rejection from the university of your dreams, etc. However, in order to succeed, we need to face our failures and learn from our mistakes.

Here's how you can deal with rejection and failure:

1.Accept it

You can’t clap with one hand

One of the biggest mistakes people do when the fail or get rejected is remain in denial. They play the blame game and put a mental block that hinders them from acknowledging their mistake. You need to realize that you can’t pin the blame on others for your failures. It’s time to own up to your mistake and accept them.

2.Be kind to yourself

To err is human, to forgive is divine

We, as humans are prone to making mistakes. However, instead of beating ourselves up over it, we need to learn to forgive ourselves. Its alright to commit errors but wallowing in self pity is not going to make any difference. Encourage yourself with kind words and try to restore your self-confidence. Never lose hope.

3.Take a break

After a storm comes the calm

One of the most common reasons for failing is if you overwork yourself. You need to take a step back and learn to relax. Take a break from the project you are working on for a short while and focus on yourself. Engage yourself in a hobby or do things that you love and make you happy. It will bring a sense of serenity and enhance your focus and concentration when you restart your efforts.

4.Set realistic goals

Too many cooks spoil the broth

Overloading yourself with multiple and impractical goals is a sure shot recipe for failure. Start small. Set small goals and slowly work your way to the top. This will give you a sense of confidence as you are able to succeed in your endeavors and will also keep your workload to a minimum

5.Analyze the problem

No problem can be solved from the same level of consciousness that created it. – A. Einstein

When you fail, you must try to figure out what went wrong. No one fails for no reason and its up to us to find the same. Look at the failure through different angles. Think out of the box. You will surely find the mistakes and the causes behind the failures.

6.Learn from your mistakes

Experience is the best teacher

Making mistakes is alright if we learn from them. Learn from the experience so that you know the pros and cons of every action you take. Failures are negative setbacks in life, but with a little bit of help and positive thinking, we can turn them into a lesson.

7.Move forward

Every moment spent looking back keeps us from moving forward – H. Clinton

Remaining fixated in your failures or rejection doesn’t help, instead it just drives us towards negativity and depression. Once you’ve found out the mistakes, search for solutions and move on. Renew your efforts to work towards your goals and you shall truly gain success.

Success and failure are two sides of the same coin and are a part and parcel of life. It is finally our choice whether we want to take failures as a learning lesson or remain fixated in the past and refuse to move on. Dealing with failure and rejection is not hard. It simply requires patience and will power, and you will realize that everything soon falls into place.