How To Handle Failure

Many people, when confronted with a setback, will often see failure as the worst thing that can happen. In fact, for many people it is the final word on their entire existence. This thought process, although common in many cases, is flawed; those who view failure as the end-all be-all of life often fail to see all that failure has to offer.


To understand the importance of this view, you have to look beyond the negative perspective. Failures in life are simply a part of life. When we fail, we always look towards that failure as a definition of who we are. However, it should be noted that we all have the ability to overcome those who seem to always win. We are all born with the ability to overcome any obstacle, and there are always ways we can improve upon our past mistakes.

The first step to changing your view on failure is to understand that you've made mistakes before. If you can't believe that you've ever failed, you've probably never made mistakes. The best way to change your negative view on failure is to accept that you've made a mistake before. That way, you're able to focus on the positives and remind yourself why you want to be successful. The more positive view you have, the more likely you'll be to reach your goal.

Next, you must see failure as a learning experience. Often times, as we continue to look at failure as a defining mark of our lives, we become resistant to any new learning. Instead, we try to avoid failure, or we push ourselves to the absolute limits of our ability to overcome it. If you've made a lot of mistakes, you've probably felt uncomfortable or incompetent every time you tried. The best way to correct that is to accept that you've made mistakes before, learn from them, and move on.

Failure, too, is a part of life. While most of us can't avoid failure, we can use failure as a way of growing. Just because you didn't "do it" the right way the first time doesn't mean you can't do it the second time. The key is to find out what changed your approach so you can make it the same way the next time.

Accepting failure is a big part of changing your view on failure. After that, though, you need to take action. It's possible that nothing will change your attitude about failure. In that case, the best thing to do is just continue to try until you feel like you can succeed. But if that's not an option, then you absolutely must find the things that will help you feel better about yourself.

You can do this by changing your mindset. When you know that you've made mistakes in your past and acknowledge that those mistakes happened because you felt inadequate or silly, you take a major step toward changing your perspective about failure. Next, you can take steps to feel more confident about your abilities. Finally, you can look at your life--and failures--as a way of helping yourself to grow and expand. Once you're ready to look at failure as a part of the bigger picture of who you are, you'll be well on your way to finding more success and happiness in your life.

If you want to be happy and successful, learn to embrace failure. Learn to see it as a chance to learn and grow. Accept that, without fail, there will be times when you will fail. That's just part of living.

Now, if you've made several attempts and nothing has happened, take some time to reflect. Really evaluate what went wrong. What did you learn from the experience? What areas do you need to work on to improve?

Don't allow failure to discourage you from your dream. You may feel like you've made several bad decisions and this may contribute to your feeling discouraged. But you've made many decisions that could have been better. So don't focus on the things that you didn't do well. Instead, focus on the things that you did very well and give yourself encouragement and hope.


Failure is something that everyone goes through. It's okay. It's a part of life. If it bothers you that much, take a deep breath, relax, and remember that you're doing the best you can. Successful people accept failure with grace, focus on their successes, and turn it into learning experiences that they can use to make themselves better.