By Donald Latumahina, November 7, 2007
You always pass failure on the way to success.
Mickey Rooney

Failure is inevitable if we are to succeed in life. Unfortunately, many people do not know how to overcome failure, and they are stopped by it when they encounter one. The ability to overcome failure is one big difference between successful and mediocre people. After all, we should pass failure on the way to success, so it is the ability to pass it that makes the difference between those who eventually reach success and those who don’t.

So, knowing that overcoming failure is essential, what should we do? Here are some tips to help you overcome failure:

1. Rise up and don’t regret; you have spent your time wisely

A life spent making mistakes is not only more honorable, but more useful than a life spent doing nothing.
George Bernard Shaw

When we fail, we might be tempted to think that we have wasted our time and thus regret it. But that’s should not be the case. The fact that you have done something is much better than doing nothing. Many people who despise persons who fail never do anything themselves. Rise up and move on. The regret lies not in doing, but in not doing.

2. Understand that failure is there to bring you wisdom

Good people are good because they’ve come to wisdom through failure.
William Saroyan

Failure is there not without a reason. It’s there to give you the wisdom you need to succeed. Each failure you encounter increases your wisdom and brings you one step closer to success. If you have this mindset, you will see failure differently. You will see each failure as an opportunity to learn.

3. Learn as much as possible from the failure

Learn from yesterday, live for today, hope for tomorrow.
Albert Einstein

While failure brings you wisdom, how much wisdom you will get depends entirely on your ability to harvest it. So don’t waste the opportunity to learn; harvest wisdom as much as possible from the failure. If you fail to do this, you may waste a lot of time by repeating the same mistakes in the future.

4. Don’t give up; maybe you are only one step away from success

Many of life’s failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.
Thomas A. Edison

The thought of giving up is tempting, especially when we have failed over and over again. But who knows that maybe you are only one step away from success? Will you waste the long journey you have passed when you are already so close to your destination?

So hold on tight and don’t give up. Thomas Edison failed thousands of times to perfect the light bulb. He knew what it means not to give up.

5. Maintain your enthusiasm

Not only you should keep on trying, you should also do it with the same level of enthusiasm as when you first began. Otherwise your subsequent effort will have less and less power.

So how do you maintain enthusiasm? One good way is by realizing that you are now one step closer to success thanks to the lessons you learn. There’s no reason not to be enthusiastic when you are getting closer to success. Another way is to keep your mind on the destination, which brings us to the next point.

6. Keep dreaming big dreams

Always have your destination in mind; keep dreaming your big dreams. Spend time to visualize them and let the dreams energize you. Let them make you passionate and enthusiastic. Once you cease dreaming, soon you will also lose your energy and be back to mediocrity. To overcome all the obstacles you encounter you always need a greater why, and that why is provided by your dreams.

7. Keep your confidence in yourself

Don’t be afraid of the space between your dreams and reality. If you can dream it, you can make it so.
Belva Davis

Keep your confidence in yourself despite the failure. Of course, you need to put a lot of effort and learn as much as possible from the failure, but you have the ability to make your dream come true. Many people who achieve great undertakings have no special trait. They are just ordinary people with extraordinary attitude. Let’s be one of them.

Update:
This post is my submission to the group writing project at Litemind.

Photo by Behrooz Nobakht

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  1. Comment by Monika @ The Writers Manifesto

    Hi Donald,

    You post just got one of my votes for the GWP over at Litemind too. Those points resonate with my own experience in failure and are spot on!

  2. Comment by holli jo

    I love these tips! They are so uplifting and so true. I especially like the first tip - there’s always something to be learned from our experiences. Perhaps even more so with failure.

  3. Comment by Donald Latumahina

    Neena,
    I agree, it’s hard to cope with failure. It’s an important lesson we all should learn.

    Xoel,
    Thanks! Much appreciated.

  4. Comment by Xoel Cardigan

    I’ve just read your tips. I see them concise and useful. Well done. I chose them for Litemind lists project.

  5. Comment by Neena (NeenMachine)

    It is so hard to cope with failure. These are points we should all remember.

  6. Comment by Donald Latumahina

    Fier,
    Thanks a lot for the vote! I appreciate it.

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