What would you do if failure was impossible?

I have found that fear of failure is what normally keeps me from going after my goals.  I have learned to manage the fear to understand the real risks and manage them to increase my chances of success.  Regardless of what I do, failure is always possible.  I can’t go after my goals without that possibility but I have learned over the years that failure can be a good thing, if you are willing to accept it and use it to improve.

Times when I failed I originally assumed would be extremely difficult. I thought that the failure would go beyond that particular situation and spread throughout my life.  I have learned from previous goals that were not met that it is not as bad as I imagined.  I once heard that it is never as good as you think it will be and never as bad as you think it would be.  I have found that to be accurate.  Failure doesn’t have to be completely devastating. 

Failure has one quality that is actually a good thing.  It keeps us humble.  Without failure we start to feel invincible and reckless.  It builds our sense of entitlement.  Many times the only way to truly become humble is to realize that we will fail in life.  

You will never truly know your limitations if you are afraid of failure.  It will prevent you from reaching your highest potential because you will avoid any situation where there is a chance that you don’t succeed.  Don’t look at failure as something that breaks you down and harms your true value.  Instead look at it as a situation where you are testing your limits and willing to take calculated risk.

The only way to truly grow is to move forward confidently in the direction that you feel you should go.  This may mean that you fall, but it also means that if you get back up and keep moving forward you will never truly fail.  Don’t be afraid to go outside of your comfort zone and risk failure if it something that you truly believe in.  History is filled with individuals that failed over and over but kept at it until they finally reached their goal.