When Things Go Wrong
We WILL have conflict when developing and achieving our goals. And at some point in the future, something will go wrong. Guaranteed.
Introduction
OK, so now you have all your goals laid out in complementary order. Ideally, you have resolved your conflicts, you know what you need to accomplish for each of them, and you have a timeline for completion. You have a goal and an accomplishment plan. You have a plan to prosper. To be happy and successful. To achieve your dreams, to live your best life!
But then…Sometimes things just don’t work out as we planned.
When we fail
The only people who don’t fail are those who don’t try or do anything. Failure is an important part of the process. In fact, a lot of famous and accomplished people have a lot to say about failure:
When everything seems to be going against you, remember that the airplane takes off against the wind, not with it-Henry Ford, automotive executive
You either win, or you learn, that’s how I feel-Jalen Hurts, Philadelphia Eagles quarterback on losing the 2023 Super Bowl.
You have not failed until you quit trying-Gordon B. Hinkley, American religious leader, author.
Do you consider failure a bad thing? Perhaps that’s really the plan for us all along, that things do not work out as we initially thought. It took me many years to learn to accept failure and consider that perhaps it was not a setback but an opportunity to do something different.
Remember our financial achievement curve and our goals accomplishment continuum? Life is not linear, and we will have to deal with problems from time to time. Some problems will be small, and some will be big. All of them will likely be a setback. But a setback is not failure; we just need to assess the situation, develop a new plan, and move forward.
Well, “Dave, you say, this is all fine and well, and great that I keep trying, but what does that mean to me?” “Now what do I do?” Well, stay with me because we are going to talk about what to do when we fail next week.
In Notes 1, 2, and 3, I reference three videos that discuss failure. Be sure to watch them, they are fantastic! I can tell you that my greatest growth and accomplishment came because of failure and disappointment.
In his excellent book Approval Addiction: The Silent Killer of Success, Steve Siebold discusses this topic at length and in various ways throughout his book. He dedicates a chapter to the topic of rejection and makes the point that fear of rejection, often considered failure, is not your enemy, but your ally. He goes on to describe, in another chapter, persistence in overcoming is what separates winners from losers. If you have not read this book, I recommend clicking on the link in Note 4 and getting your own copy today. Yes, it’s hard hitting and may cause you to chafe a bit, but it’s a good pain, like after a hard workout.
You see, failure is just one way of not doing something. Edison, when confronted about all his failed experiments in developing the light bulb, stated, “I have not failed, I have just found 1,000 ways that will not work.”
Summary
The purpose of today’s post is to remind you that failure is a part of the process of goal attainment, and we should accept that, get used to it, and have a plan to overcome. Just like the quotes from the successful people above and the videos you watched.
We don’t fail until we stop getting up. Next week, we’ll talk about how to overcome failure when it occurs.
That’s all for this week!
When Things Go Wrong
Afterburner Success Partners
http://absuccesspartners.com/
What’s in it for me?
If you want to get ahead in life, if you want to achieve your dreams and live your best life, you must take meaningful, deliberate action that follows a proven path. Getting ahead is about learning what to do and then doing it over time.
Call to Action
Just. Do. Something. Make a decision on what you want or need to do, define the path, and get after it. Do it today.
Recommended Resources
See notes below for either of my books.
Up Next
Overcoming failure.
Notes
Please note that as an Amazon Affiliate, I may earn a small commission on the sale of any of these recommended resources.
Famous Failures: https://youtu.be/zLYECIjmnQs
Will Smith: https://youtu.be/r1Gy5YjBMvk
Denzel Washington: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sfQohyQmFsc
Approval Addiction: The Silent Killer of Success by Steve Siebolt: https://amzn.to/3ZnL8jg
Achieve Your Dreams: A Complete Guide to Live Your Best Life, by David Giustozzi: https://amzn.to/3IxEFgy
Everyday Cooking for Everyday People Like Us, by David Giustozzi: https://amzn.to/437OhVQ