Failure Is Always An Option!

"The reason to set and seek specific goals is to improve the quality of your life and those around you through the experience you will gain on the journey towards your goal." There are many misplaced values in modern day society and one of them is where success is good but failure is for idiots and losers. We all know what winners and people that are successful in their endeavors get in our society. The attention, the fame, the kudos, and the potential of being a role model in their community. However, to those who had the courage, took the calculated risk, tried to do something positive and failed, there seems to be a stigma. That stigma is one of failure where business associates distance themselves, loved ones may say "I told you so", and a pool full of friends seem to dry up into a desert with barely a friendly oasis. Too much emphasis is placed on winning. This is especially true when we see in mainstream media the concept of "failure is not an option" and it is important to "win at all costs" being preached everywhere we look. In my life, I have failed many times but I have also won many times as well. The number of actual wins and failures doesn't really matter. What does matter is how we as individuals deal with winning but more importantly how we deal with failure. It is a sad postscript on our so-called civilized society when most people can readily accept winning but not as many can accept failure. Having mustered the courage to work towards a goal is only two-thirds of what you will need when you succeed, and is only one-quarter of the courage you will need when you fail. You can only win or fail, if you set your sights on a specific goal. Knowing exactly what you want or where you want to be, so that you can set a specific goal is no easy task in itself. However, it is a necessary process if you want to evolve and move on to the next level in this life. Practically every motivational, self-improvement, and even sales book will tell you that you have to set goals for yourself. They may even tell you how to do this, but on the specific practical reason for setting a goal, they get a little fuzzy. You set goals to reach them, right? Wrong! The reason to set and seek specific goals is to improve the quality of your life and those around you through the experience you will gain on the journey towards your goal, not the actual attainment of the goal itself. Now go back and read the last sentence again, slowly until you really understand it. When you work towards your goals with this in mind, the attainment of your goals will come a lot easier and should you be side tracked by failure, you will be able to learn from your failure, make the required adjustments and get back on track. Which leads me back to our discussion of failure. You see, based on the reason we set and seek goals, failure just like winning is an important element in your life experience. The concept or act of winning or failure is neither bad nor good. The fact that you have the courage to set and seek a goal, and then work towards it with all the triumphs and tribulations is in itself, what makes you victorious in your life. The attainment of the goal or the win is the end of the journey. But it is not a sad ending but the completion of a lesson in your life experience that will ultimately prepare you for the next lesson or journey. No matter who or where you are now, it is always important to remember that you cannot change the world you live in, but when you change your perception of it, only then will you not face any limitations and be victorious. Copyright