Today’s post is a guest post from Chris Nosal. I was anticipating getting one last minute post in prior to 2013, but to be honest it probably won’t happen now.

So if I don’t, I wish you a very happy and prosperous new year!

I also hope you rock out your undoubted awesomeness and achieve what ever it is you’re looking to achieve by kicking ass, taking names and using any other cliche you can come up with.

You never know, hiring a Life Coach may be that extra push you need?

What If I Fail?

If you’re like me, there’s been MANY times you’ve been afraid to do something, or afraid to take chances, because you were afraid you’re going to fail.

What would your childhood self say if he/she saw all the opportunities you missed out on, and all the dreams you gave up on, because you weren’t willing to take a chance?

But what would your childhood self say if he/she could get a look at the choices you’ve made?

Sometimes playing it safe is the easiest choice in life, but in return, you’re forced to live your life knowing you settle for not truly knowing what was out there, not knowing what you could have done with your life, and, most importantly, not having the chance to learn or grow.

We’ve all had times where we’ve given up on dreams, not gone after something, or not taken a chance, all because we were afraid of that dreaded question:

“What if I fail?”

We Aren’t Meant To Fear Failure

But what about when we were children; we dreamed of perfection, we were ambitious, and we only dreamed big dreams about how we could change the world.

As children, we didn’t even once think about the possibility of failure… we just think about helping others, making people happy, and making amazing ourselves with what we accomplish.

Whether it was learning to walk, swim, ride a bike; whatever.

We went after what we wanted relentlessly, only focusing on our goals and objectives, and on turning the outcomes in our mind into a reality.

We did whatever we had to do, no matter how many obstacles got in our way, to get to the finish

And you know what’s even more amazing?

We ALWAYS accomplished our goals without exception.

Failure Never Even Entered Our Minds

As children, and a trait you’ll find in successful adults, you’ll notice that they build an image in their mind, and focus on pursuing it relentlessly without even paying attention to the obstacles, and every time we experienced a “failure”, we just ignored it, and kept on moving in the direction of the star we were shooting at.

We dreamed of settling for nothing less than the best for ourselves, we didn’t even think of the words “no” or “can’t”, and we just kept moving forward

Why We Began To Fear Failure

Like anything else, we were taught to look at the world a certain way as we grew up.

And for most of us, rather than hearing:

“You learned to walk, swim, ride a bike, and achieve every single goal you set for yourself because you kept going in the face of adversity; failure is just a natural part of learning as you try something you’ve never done before, and move toward your goals”.

Most of us hear:

“You failed; that’s automatically something negative; you suffered a bad outcome… failure is something you want to avoid at all costs.”

Most of us only fear failure because someone else taught it to us to.

We learn and grow through our challenges naturally, without even looking at them as “challenges”, but rather “steps” to realizing the images we build in our wonderful imaginations, and we just keep going after our dreams until they’re reality… we don’t even see loss until someone teaches us to when we’re older; we only see achievement and gain.

Failure Is Critical To Winning

One thing you’ll notice if you study ANYONE who’s become successful, is that their successes were always preceded by far more failures.

All the world’s most successful people have one thing in common:

They never stopped dreaming, or focusing on a goal the EXACT same way they did when learning to walk, swim, or ride a bike.

And the funny thing is, as we get older, that desire to dream bigger, to imagine achieving something incredible, and to do something great for people stays present in all of us, but it gets squashed by all the crap that gets put into our heads about failure being a bad thing, rather than a learning experience.

Learning To Look At Failure The Right Way

Whether it was James Dyson doing 5,126 failed prototypes before he got it right, Thomas Edison with 10,000 failed attempts to invent the light bulb, or Walt Disney going bankrupt twice before he achieved his first success, none of these great achievements would have changed our world had it not been for failure.

Here is the truth about failure:

Failure = learning.

They are the same thing.

If we, as children, are born with all the tools to dream, imagine, and achieve every goal we set for ourselves, and we learn and grow through our challenges, and we amaze the world with what we’re capable of.

We’ve got hidden skills and talents; all of us… but the only way they’re going to be brought out is if we us this natural formula for success we’re all born with.

And the best part is I don’t even have to teach you anything; you already used this formula to walk and talk, so you just need to use it as an adult; it’s that simple!

Speaking from personal experiences, the most meaningful learning experiences in my life came out of failures.

If I hadn’t failed I’d still be the same, and I’d never have learned or grew.

I never would have been presented with challenges, and I’d never have shown myself and the world what I was truly capable of.

I’d have never gotten that sense of achievement and self-confidence that only comes from knowing I did something I thought was impossible, all because I had the guts and faith to believe in myself, just like you should in your own self.

What Was Your Biggest Learning Experience That Came From Failure, And How Did It Reshape The Course Of Your Life?

Bio

Chris Nosal is a blogger who writes about marketing, passion, and all the things that inspire him at his blog. You can visit his site to read more free articles, get marketing advice, learn something new, or just to say hi.