Daring to Fail: Uncovering the Hidden Strengths in Our Struggles

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“Only those who dare to fail greatly can ever achieve greatly.” ~Robert F. Kennedy

How do you define failure?

When something doesn’t go as planned?

When someone tells you they don’t like what you’ve made?

When an outcome doesn’t match your expectations?

I find it increasingly important to define failure. Which seems like a weird thing to do because we’re all trying to avoid it. Even talking about failure feels like it has the power to bring about failure.

No one wants to be labelled a failure. And it’s because of that underlying fear that we end up stuck, miserable, …

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“Only those who dare to fail greatly can ever achieve greatly.” ~Robert F. Kennedy

How do you define failure?

When something doesn’t go as planned?

When someone tells you they don’t like what you’ve made?

When an outcome doesn’t match your expectations?

I find it increasingly important to define failure. Which seems like a weird thing to do because we’re all trying to avoid it. Even talking about failure feels like it has the power to bring about failure.

No one wants to be labelled a failure. And it’s because of that underlying fear that we end up stuck, miserable, and afraid of the very actions that will release us from that doubt.

Here’s a glimpse into a story I often find myself repeating. I come up with an idea, I get feedback, and I start building. I’m acting from a place of creative excitement where my juices are flowing. I’m swept away by the belief that this idea could change the trajectory of my life.

And then… the outcome doesn’t match my expectations. It doesn’t reach as many people as I thought it would. Or it isn’t as profitable as I thought it might be.

It bloody guts me.

I grasp what I think is the issue. I ruminate on what should have been. I get pissed off because it feels like I’m back at ground zero.

Am I doomed for failure?

That depends on the choice I make next.

Do I give up?

Then you best believe I’m a failure.

Because the life we want reveals itself by taking another step forward.

As Winston Churchill said, “Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.”

You’ve heard of the Fortune 500, right? It’s a term that gets thrown around a lot, especially in business circles.

The Fortune 500, an annual leaderboard published by Fortune magazine, ranks the 500 most revenue-generating companies in the United States. It’s a snapshot of business success. Yet, a glance from 1955 to 2019 reveals only 10.4% of companies remained on the list.

This stark turnover underscores a crucial lesson: Success is fleeting without continual adaptation.

And therein lies peace of mind.

The point isn’t to climb the peak and stay there. These places that feel like destinations are nothing more than sandcastles, eventually washing away with the tide.

The point is to use what you’ve learned and apply it to your next adventure.

So how do we decide which direction to take after a “failure”?

How can we know which choice will lead us to the best possible version of our lives?

Failure = feedback.

We can only tell where something is in relation to something else.

Putting in the effort means we have something to compare and contrast it to.

There’s a tendency to focus on what the tiny sliver of companies did to succeed, but far more can be gleaned from what the majority didn’t do and why they disappeared.

What did they stop doing?

What did they foolishly ignore because they wanted to be right?

Why