Success Information

Learning From Your Mistakes


Your ability to deal constructively and effectively with mistakes and temporary setbacks is a mental skill that you can learn and become proficient at. The best way to deal with any failure is to realize that it is an indispensable prerequisite for success. You have to treat failure as an opportunity to lean, and begin again. You can overcome the fear of failure by doing the things you fear over and over again, and then resolve to bounce back, rather than letting them break you when things don't go right.

The fear of failure is the greatest single obstacle to success for most people. It is the fear of failure that causes people to see the world in negative terms and creates obstacles in their own mind that don't exist in reality. The fear of failure can be so strong that most people give up before they even begin because of fear that they will loose their time, money, or emotions in a new venture or relationship. Many people today operate at levels of effectiveness far below their capabilities because of the overwhelming effect of this fear.

The starting point in overcoming the fear of failure is to realize that it is impossible to achieve success of any kind without failure. Mistakes are opportunities to learn something new, something you did not know before. The more mistakes you make, the more you will learn. There is even a bit of magic hidden in every mistake. So the more mistakes you make, the more magic you will have in your life.

Virtually all men and women of high achievement have been great failures throughout much their lives. Thomas Edison failed in thousands of experiments to develop synthetic rubber, the light bulb, new plant species, and hundreds of other breakthroughs that eventually changed our entire world.

Levi Strauss headed for the gold fields of California to strike it rich in mining. However, he failed as miner, so the began sewing pants out of canvas for miners who were successful. Today, I think most of the world has heard of Levi's jeans.

Christopher Columbus was looking for a trade route to China and made the mistake of accidentally bumping into America, the richest, most powerful country in the world.

When you make a mistake, it is important that you accept it. Believe it or not, studies have shown that most people fail on average 70 percent of the time. Some people more and others less.

Successful people prosper in life is because of their tendency to cut their losses thereby minimizing their mistakes. It is only when a person refuses to accept that they have made a bad choice or decision and prolong it, that a mistake becomes extremely expensive and hurtful to his or her future. The inability or unwillingness to face the fact that you are not perfect, that you have made bad choices and decisions that have turned into mistakes, is a major source of stress.

This is why the quality of "intellectual honesty" is one of the most respected qualities in a person, especially leaders. When you are intellectually honest, you will look at the world and deal with your circumstances as facts and realities, rather than hoping, wishing, and praying that they would or could be different. The minute you begin to deal straightforwardly with life, you will become a far more positive, creative, and constructive person.

There is a lesson in every mistake. That is why you must learn from every mistake you make. Making mistakes is the way we were all designed to learn. If we fail to make mistakes, or make them and do not learn from them, the magic goes out of life. Life goes backward and gets smaller, instead of expansive and filled with magic. Whenever we make a mistake, we often become upset. And being upset is our maker's way of telling us that we need to learn something. It is a tap on our shoulder saying, "Pay attention. You have something important to learn." If we lie, blame, justify, or deny the upset, we will waste the precious gem of wisdom that is in every mistake.

When you make a mistake one of the first things you should do is to define the problem or mistake clearly. Then, ask yourself, What happened, or what is the problem that needs to be solved? Then write it down. When you write the problem down on paper, you'll be able see it more clearly. You'll then be able to understand it better and it will be easier for you to find a solution.

Then you should define all the possible causes of the mistake or problem. Ask yourself, How did this happen? Why did it happen? What were the critical variables, that caused the problem or mistake?

After you have defined the problem clearly in writing and all the possible causes, then you need to identify all the possible solutions, or ways of dealing with it. Ask yourself, What are all the different things that I could do to minimize the cost of the mistake, or to solve the problem that has arisen? The more ideas you have, the more likely it is that you will come up with an idea, or combination of ideas, that will solve the problem or correct the mistake.

Successful people do not make the right decisions all the time. Rather, successful people make their decisions right. Many of the decisions you make and conclusions you come to in life, will eventually prove wrong. It is how you deal these situations that will determine your success or failure.

Life is a continuous succession of problems and mistakes. But it is not what happens to you, but how you react to what happens to you that makes all the difference in your life. You have within you, the ability to learn from every mistake, to extract every valuable lesson that is contained in every difficulty, situation, or challenge that you face. You have the intelligence to turn every stumbling block into a stepping stone, or springboard toward higher achievement.

Mistakes and problems are good. Without them there would be no opportunities for success or greatness. If there are no problems to solve, then there are no possibilities for success and achievement. If you want to be successful, you must take every difficulty and challenge that life throws at you, accept it as an inevitable part of the growing experience, and then turn it to your advantage in every way possible. Almost every mistake you make contains a hidden treasure that you can take and apply to your future to make your life into something extraordinary and worthwhile. And when you become a master at learning and growing from the inevitable mistakes you make, your future will become unlimited.

Copyright ©2004 by Joe Love and JLM & Associates. All rights reserved worldwide.

Joe Love draws on his 25 years of experience helping both individuals and companies build their businesses, increase profits, and achieve total success. A former ad agency executive and marketing consultant, Joe's work in personal development focuses on helping his clients identify hidden marketable assets that create windfall opportunities and profits, as well as sound personal happiness and peace.

Reach Joe at: joe@jlmandassociates.com

Read more articles and newsletters at: http://www.jlmandassociates.com


MORE RESOURCES:

TVNZ

Low-key Manning key to success of Giants offense
CNN - 38 minutes ago
Because you have had some success, it doesn't change your mentality or the way you approach things.'' Manning's closest friends on the team are the ...
Eagles Notes: Success exists from red zone to the end zone Philadelphia Inquirer
Philadelphia Eagles at New York Giants NFL Odds & Picks Locksmith Sports Picks
Eagles ‘D’ gets ‘A’-rated marks Norristown Times Herald
NBC Philadelphia - The Star-Ledger - NJ.com
all 844 news articles


China experts score success against snail fever
Reuters - 43 minutes ago
HONG KONG, Jan 8 (Reuters) - Chinese scientists appear to have found a formula to get rid of "snail fever", an age-old but neglected tropical disease ...


Recipe for Success: Presidio Helps Food Industry Manufacturers ...
MSNBC - 1 hour ago
To demonstrate how the adoption of new network infrastructure can be achieved while significantly reducing up-front costs, Presidio cites the successes of ...


Subaru's unexciting road to success
Los Angeles Times, CA - 21 hours ago
Despite these successes, Subaru, unlike other Japanese carmakers, hasn’t conquered California. Its all-wheel-drive vehicles are more popular in New England ...


Boston Globe

Texas hopes ’08 success leads to ’09 national title
Fort Worth Star Telegram, TX - 17 hours ago
By JIMMY BURCH Texas has a good chance of entering the 2009 season at No. 1. Getty Images/Jed Jacobsohn GLENDALE, Ariz. — The final call on Texas’ national ...
Rival QBs: anything but 'Young' OSU - The Lantern
A daily look at the best sportswriting on the Web Wall Street Journal Blogs
all 2,236 news articles


Boston Globe

Don't overlook DiMasi's successes
Boston Globe, United States - 18 hours ago
DiMasi made the Massachusetts healthcare reform law more progressive and affordable, and is recognized as one of the principal authors of this success. ...


SUCCESS STORY / CHARLOTTE DeBOSE, 37: From 200 to 140 pounds
Atlanta Journal Constitution,  USA - 18 hours ago
Write: Success Stories, c/o Jamila Robinson, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Sixth Floor, 72 Marietta St. NW, Atlanta, GA 30303; ...


Las Vegas Sun

Sugar Bowl marks sweet success for Valley High grad
Las Vegas Sun, NV - 3 hours ago
By Ray Brewer Dave Martin / AP Utah linebacker Stevenson Sylvester (10) celebrates after sacking the Alabama quarterback in the first half of the Sugar Bowl ...


CTV.ca

Commentary: Secrets to success in Washington
CNN - Jan 6, 2009
By Ed Rollins Editor's Note: Ed Rollins, who served as political director for President Ronald Reagan, is a Republican strategist who was national chairman ...
Hoyer Says Don’t Expect Stimulus Package Soon New York Times
Despite Obama, Pelosi Is Still In Charge Human Events
all 4,173 news articles


Green Gardening: The sweet smell of success: a birthday load of ...
Seattle Post Intelligencer - 46 minutes ago
By ANN LOVEJOY I may have mentioned from time to time that deer are quite fond of my garden. So am I, and in some ways, I suppose, the deer arguably give me ...

Success - Google News

home | site map
© 2006