BY JEFF CORBETT

Are you afraid of failing?

According to Dr. Gary Winch in “Psychology Today,” “Everyone hates to fail, but for some people, failure presents such a great psychological threat that their motivation to avoid failure exceeds their motivation to succeed.”

Many of us hold on to jobs we hate or long-dead relationships because we fear the risks of moving, telling ourselves we’ll fail, so we freeze, settle down and live our life. life in what Dr. Seuss calls “the waiting place.”

Fear of failure condemns you to a life of mediocrity, preventing you from accessing the incredible opportunities that await you.

So let’s define failure for what it really is.

Failure is part of success

You’ve heard stories of great people who failed on their path to greatness. President John F. Kennedy told us, “Only those who dare to fail greatly can achieve great things.” »

Both in your business and in your life, if you are truly successful, you can attribute a number of mistakes and failures because they have made you sharper, wiser, and better prepared.

Basketball great Michael Jordan said this about his own experiences:

“I’ve missed over 9,000 shots in my career. I lost almost 300 matches. Twenty-six times I was trusted to make the game-winning shot and I missed it. I have failed over and over again in my life. And that’s why I’m successful.

A failure, as writer Elbert Hubbard defined it, is someone who has made a mistake but is unable to learn from the experience.

Failure teaches you to bounce back

Novelist Paulo Coehlo said it best: “The secret of life is to fall seven times and get up eight times.” »

Florence Chadwick became the first woman to swim the English Channel in both directions. Early on July 4, 1952, she slipped into the frigid Pacific to attempt to become the first woman to swim from Catalina Island to the California coast, a distance of 22 miles.

With fog thick as soup, she could barely see the support boat next to her, carrying her trainer and mother. Hour after hour she swam, nearby sharks kept at bay with gunshots.

Fifteen hours and 55 minutes later, exhausted, freezing and still shrouded in fog, Chadwick begged to be pulled out of the water.

“It’s not much further at all,” his coach shouted.

Still, Chadwick insisted on resigning.

Can you imagine how she felt when she learned that she was only a half-mile from the California coast when she abandoned her efforts?

Two months later, she tried again in identical and difficult conditions. This time, not only did she achieve it, but she also broke the men’s world record by two hours! His previous failure had become his motivation.

Failure requires ownership

This is the hardest part. When you fail, forget, make a mistake, or drop the ball, say so. Take ownership and responsibility for the mistake, and you will be amazed at how respect for you will increase.

Former New York City Mayor Ed Koch made a very bad decision in advocating a $3 million bike lane route in Manhattan, which failed miserably.

He took a lot of heat for that. He was scheduled to appear on a popular Sunday morning news show in the city, where reporters planned to humiliate him for the debacle.

But Koch had class. Five minutes into the 30-minute program, Koch said this: “I take full responsibility for this failure. I made a mistake, I made a very bad decision and I regret it very much. This is totally my fault, because I thought it would work, and I was wrong.

As reporters continued to hurl accusations and tirades about the bike path, he responded, “Look, I told you, I made a really bad decision. There’s really nothing more to say other than I’m really sorry.

After several still timid attack attempts against Koch, which received the same response, and with 20 minutes to go, there was nothing left to discuss regarding the cycle path. The rest of the show was just chatter and Koch walked away victorious.

Your next step

So what will it be? Will your fear hold you back or will you view failure as a step toward success?

Reframe your thinking. Take risks. Run into the roar. Do something new and different. Incredible opportunities await you.

It’s all up to you!

Jeff Corbett is an experienced speaker, meeting facilitator, and sales and marketing professional. He lives in Statesville.