Posted by There is no success without failure, every great person will tell you one or two setbacks on their path to achieving success. In fact you would find that it seems the more they achieve; the more failures they have to show for it. This two sides of the coin; success and failure is something everyone has to face as a resident of planet earth. But here is something you should know; how we see failure is very important. It is very vital we know what and how to react to failure as we transverse the surface of the earth. Now, let us take a look at the streets, have a peek into the universe. You will find two sets of persons;
- The people who let their failures define them
- The ones who learn and recognize that failure is a part of the journey, but does not define the journey.
You will find the first set of persons tell you that they would have been that great person if, they didn’t fail in the family business.
“If it was not that flood that came and destroyed my warehouse, do you think I will be here?” Mr A begins his story. Apparently, everyone in the neighborhood knows about his favourite lines.
These people go about telling their tales, on every corner to every passerby who is willing to listen to them, they go about showing the scars of failure that has made them to remain where they are.
Now, here comes the second set of individuals. We all know the second set of persons are those who heal from their wounds, get up and go about their business. They keep trying and trying. They also have scars, but do not show them. I’m fact they do a whole lot to better their lives such that those scars do not remain visible to the onlooker. They have no excuse, no reasons to give as to why they are stuck or are in the same situation or place over the years.
Now the question is, should the scars of failure be left visible? I ask, why should it, when you can heal from it? When you can make it up with better wins? The thing is, everyone has a story to tell. People have burns, bruises, scorches, sores and not just scars. They have a mountain of things that they are dealing with, but they go about their business tight-lipped. You would not know unless they tell you.
So letting ours show, is not going to let them empathize with us, and accept our excuses for not doing the important things that will help us. Because some of them have gone through worse. And if you do get some people to empathize with you, it is a question of how long they will do so; if you do not do anything to change your situation.
-What will be the reason you would want to leave your scars visible?
-Why do you want to let the past define you?
Is it to chase clout? Because several people tend to identify with pain and suffering?
Heal and move on. You do not want to live out the rest of your life with regrets. Because that is the end result of letting pain and setbacks hold you back. If you have a major failure and think you cannot rise, well the thoughts that you cannot start all over is what is crippling you and not the reality. The reality of life is that when you wake to the break of dawn and life offers another opportunity, it means there is hope. You can rise again. The scars may be there but know that people do not really care about you, until you succeed. They do not want to know why you could not do a particular thing. They want to hear how you went through that and succeed.
If you do want to tell tales about your failures, it should be from a point of success, it should be a motivation and a pointer for someone who is in the same situation as you were to keep going because they will make it. Why? Because you are a living testimony that wounds and scars do fade, and they can be used to create impact.
When you succeed and get that grand thing you have always been looking for, you will find that the scars are no longer there. The wounds and pain of the past becomes a distant memory, you do not remember some of them anymore. If the scars of failures are still visible in one’s life, it means the person has not really moved on, he has not reconciled with his past to face the reality. Let go, heal, move on. Let your success do the talking an not the failures.
Photo credit: Guardian