Failure is perhaps the root of most fears; the force that holds people below their greatest (or minimum) potential, be it in life, love or career. But playing it safe can cause missed opportunities and a lifetime of “What if’s”.
So, if the cost of “playing it safe” seems like a bigger loss than the risk of failing, perhaps it’s time for failure to be reevaluated and be perceived as a sign of courage and that of being human.
We came across an honest and refreshing article on reevaluating failure by college student Melissa Fares published in The Sophian – a student newspaper at Smith College in Massachusetts, USA. In her article, simply titled Reevaluating Failure, Melissa wrote:
At a conference a couple of weeks ago, I had the chance to hear Biz Stone, co-founder of Twitter, speak about failure, an unpleasant outcome that everyone experiences and almost everyone fears. “Failure looks good on your resume,” he opined – a remark that I can’t say I was expecting to hear – “because then people know you’re actually human.
“Fear of failure is ingrained in us at an early age. Often, that fear has to do with external validation, the response we get from others. Just as often, it can be rooted in nonsense.”
We hope a young voice like Melissa’s will remind you to not let failure – be it from the past or in the future – get in the way of your goals. Instead, use it as an experience to learn and grow from, and become a greater you!
Read the full article here and tells us – how has fear of failure affected your life, and have you overcome it? If so, how?
