Failure and Success

Failure is instructive. The person who really thinks learns quite as much from his failures as from his successes.'

This quote has a religious heritage.
Hebrews 5:8: `Although he was a Son, he learned obedience from what he suffered.'
It also requires similar disciplines and commitments associated with religious life.

The quote also has a lay heritage.
'Once you fall off the horse, get back in the saddle.' (Not sure where this quote comes from)
This requires a person to overcome fear to achieve.

To learn from failure requires a person to overcome fear with discipline and commitment. Failure can impose uncertainty and loss of self respect. Failure is definitely hard and can alter future pathways. Failure can effect a person's vision. Failure can destroy dreams. When realization of failure occurs realities are changed. Realization of failure can be a life altering event.

Failure is life changing.


The key to failure is the thinking. Thinking can assist a person to make decisive decisions rather than reactive responses. Decisive decisions require strategies rather than hunches. Thinking that is derived from failure should delve into relationships. Interpersonal skills, leadership and teamwork are areas that failure can enrich. Thinking should enable optimism. Thinking about one's failure is hard.

The objective to thinkings from failure is learning.

Learnings should identify the factors that enabled the failure. Identification should enable a deconstruction of priorities. From the deconstruction new priorities should be identified.

Learning from failure is phoenix like. Learning from failure involves a death of a dream and then a resurrection of a dream. From the ashes of failure and through deep reflection and conscientious analysis success can emerge. Is a resurrected dream the same?

Is failure a requirement for success? Perhaps failure is the inspiration for learning. Perhaps our overwhelming want to succeed is actually a limitation. Failure and the learnings gained from failure moves us forward without restrictive chains of past glories. Failure can be a liberating experience in a world which is future focussed and fast changing. Learning from failure may have more benefits than the gains made from previous successes.

Failure enables us to confront fear. Overcoming fear builds confidence. Overcoming failure breaks down personal barriers. Does continual success offer the same benefits?