How to Fail & Win at Life
If you want to accomplish anything in life, it’ll come with failure
I watched my friend fall from the rocks and SPLAT! across the ground. Looking over her body, I was horrified.
She jumped back up and said, “Now you try!” I shook my head. No way, Jose.
She explained to me, “You have to practice falling. It’s inevitable you will fall, so you need to practice taking small falls.”
Mind. Blown.
The same goes for failure. You will fail, but it would be good to know how to fail properly.
When you learn to fail safely, you can come out of the experience more equipped and ready to try again.
You may be wondering, “How can I fail safely?” In this article, we will get into how you can do that and use failures to your advantage.
Let’s get into it.
A Guiding Principle
Failure is a key factor in life. It happens to all of us at one point or another. You might be inclined to give up and not try again, but if you learn how to fail, you’ll want to get back up.
If you want to accomplish anything in life, it will come with some failure. You think it’s bad, but it’s how you learn. You’ve been conditioned to believe failure is wrong, but what if that were false?
What if failure was a stepping stone on your way to greatness?
How to Fail Successfully
To fail successfully, there are a number of steps to follow.
1. Learn from what happened
When you fail, you’ll be disappointed. It’s natural. Failures are a necessary part of growth. Think of failures as mistakes. That’s what they are. And mistakes are okay to make. It’s human.
Perfection doesn’t exist, so don’t worry about it. The only thing you can hope for is to get better each day.
And when you treat failures as lessons, they can teach you. They teach you what went right and wrong. You can take that knowledge and apply it to your future endeavors. The goal is to improve, not stop failing.
2. Take calculated risks
You want to consider the potential downsides before acting. The goal is to maximize positive outcomes while minimizing risk.
Know what you’re getting yourself into. Gather as much information as possible so you can make an informed decision.
You have to be able to handle loss if it happens.
3. Ask for feedback
One of the beautiful things about failure is you can learn from others who have made the same mistakes. You can also get feedback from friends or coworkers.
Find a loving critic who will give honest feedback but won’t shame you. A loving critic will highlight your blind spots and tell you how to improve without degrading you.
4. Be willing to be wrong
Know you aren’t always right. Sometimes, you’ll need humility to accept you don’t know everything.
Approach risks with a growth mindset. Even if something goes wrong, you learn something from it.
Photo by Jonatan Lewczuk on Unsplash
Cultivating a Safe Environment for Failure
To fail safely, create a safe environment to do so. If your plan fails, you want defenses in place to have a backup option. If possible, create safety nets, backup plans, and plan Bs, Cs, and Ds.
This might be a mentor to guide you or software that automatically saves your work. You’re ensuring that even when you stumble, you won’t faceplant. If anything, you’ll get a light bruise.
Failure is a matter of ‘when’ not ‘if.’ When you accept this, the less it’ll hurt when you fall. You’re not being reckless, but you understand it’s a stepping stone to success.
Final Thoughts
Set some boundaries, guidelines, and processes that define your own personal ‘fail safe’ mode. Maybe it’s setting a budget for how much you can afford to lose on a new business venture or determining how many hours you can dedicate to learning a new skill.
And don’t forget to mitigate losses. If something goes wrong, you’ll have a plan in place to lessen the blow.
In the end, it’s about learning and getting back up. Every time you get up, you’re stronger than before. The only time you fail is when you don’t get back up.
So take a breath, stand up, and go out there and tackle the world.
Ready to level yourself up and become the best version of yourself? Download my free journaling guide now.
Maggie Kelly is a freelance writer who writes about mental health, self-help, and psychology. Contact at maggiepkelly@gmail.com
