How To Fail Forward

We all want to succeed.

At least I assume we all do, if you happen to fall in the category of people who don’t, this article may very well not be for you. Stick around anyway though, we’re about to have some fun.

The majority of people welcome success like it’s a Shiba Inu puppy. So when we don’t succeed, we tend to be pretty beaten up about it.

We all know how much failure sucks. Failure is never easy and often enough, it can feel like the end of the world. It tugs at our heart strings and de-motivates us, it’s our worst enemy and our biggest roadblock.

That’s all failure is though, a roadblock. A sign or post that simply says what we’ve tried beforehand won’t work, it’s time to find another way to reach our destination.

Occasionally, failure is final. Sometimes, there’s just no through road.

…Well, at least that’s what they tell trailblazers. TRUE trailblazers never believe it though, and I’m about to tell you why NEITHER SHOULD ANY ONE OF US.

Resistance

The moment we decide to pursue anything, be it passion project or promotion, we face resistance. It’s part of the process. Humans are hardwired to find the path of least resistance, whatever will get them at least some semblance of what they want without worrying about too much.

But that path tends to also be the path of least fun and least reward. Those of us who’ve ever wrestled with the resistance involved in trying to achieve something have found oursleves pinned at one point or another. The ones of us who were able to win those fights in the end, were the ones who were able to fail forward.

My wrestling metaphor somewhat falls apart now but all failing forward means is making the seemingly hopeless situation (the failure), become what propels you into a better one (success).

Failing forward means making progress even in loss. Failing forward is powerful, failing foward is immensely useful, and more than anything else, failing forward is easier than it looks.

The Magic Key…

The key to failing forward lies in our minds. It lies in the words we say to ourselves after the failure and what kind of attitude we adopt because of these words we’ve said.

To fail forward is to fail and be happy you did. It’s to take that failure and realise all it taught you was what didn’t work, which means you can go and try again not wasting anymore time on things that don’t get you where you want to go.

Like falling forward, the best way to fail forward is to lean in the direction you’ve been heading all along. So failing forward properly, means looking at the catastrophe and figuring right after what the next step is.

Don’t fear failure, embrace it. Then, and only then, will you start to fail forward and reach your goals one very clumsy step at a time.

The Conclusion

I said failing forward would be easy, but the road won’t. Having to constantly catch yourself can bruise your palms and you sure do look uncoordinated when other people are around to see a few too many of your failures.

But never stop. If you really believe you need to go where you’re headed, no amount of strange looks or blisters will stop you.

So keep trying. Keep moving forward. Most importantly, never (and I cannot stress this enough) stop failing forward ;)