Before we look at why It's good to fail, what is failure?
Here are just a few definitions of failure:
- ‘lack of success’
- ‘the neglect or omission of expected or required action’
- ‘to be unsuccessful in achieving one’s goal’
- ‘neglect to do something’
- ‘cease to work properly’
Accept failure as a given in life.
J.K. Rowling put it well when she said:
”It is impossible to live without failing at something, unless you live so cautiously that you might as well not have lived at all, in which case you have failed by default”.
Some people young and old are reluctant to fail. That is such a shame, because it’s this fear of failure that will hold someone back from finding new ways to embrace life. As a society, we are trying to avoid negative words right now, thinking it will bring more positivity. Why not embrace the word failure, chase it down, and in turn bring happiness to your life that way?
Failing is pretty much guaranteed. We all do it, more than we care to admit even, but it can be the fuel to greater things for people. Read on for 5 reasons why it’s important to fail…
1. Keeps us grounded.
There is nothing better to keep our feet on the ground than to mess up at something we expected to be a straightforward success. Look at the following list of failures:
- Late for work/an appointment.
- Missed an ‘easy’ chance, tackle, opportunity etc. in my sport of choice.
- Failed a driving test.
- Failed an exam.
- Didn’t get the job I thought I would.
- Wasn’t a very good friend/partner (that is a failure).
2. Helps build resilience.
The Wanderlust Worker Blog say failure ’emboldens the mind, making you stronger’.
Resilience is something we are all going to need at some stage in our lives. How can we develop resilience if we always take the easy way out, or don’t put ourselves in a position where there is a high possibility of failure? 
If a certain situation doesn’t go your way, try follow these steps to help you build your backbone that will only make you stronger in the future.
- Allow the disappointment to sink in.
- Figure out why it happened.
- Allow for external factors, you cannot control everything.
- Get a plan in place to help you do better the next time.
- Go ahead and do it again.
- Rinse and repeat.
3. helps us figure out what we want in life.
Even if you are lucky enough to know what you want from a very young age, failing along the way can help everyone improve their journey.
‘Through failure, you will get to know yourself better and you will learn from your mistakes. Failures make us rethink, reconsider, and find new ways and strategies to achieve our goals’.
The above quote is from a blog by Career Girl Daily and it pretty much hits the nail on the head for me. When we are in the zone and things are going well, we rarely stop to think. But if and when you stumble unexpectedly, big or small, it allows us to take a breath, reassess our situation and ultimately should help us make decisions that are positive for our future.
4. Makes you appreciate what you have.
Struggling a little on the way to achieving something you really want can make it all the sweeter when you finally get there. I have rented for pretty much half of my life, my wife and I were married over 5 years before we could finally buy our own home. We still pinch ourselves over 2 years later for what we have now. 
If you ask me would I have preferred an easier path to get our own home, I would say to you I wouldn’t have changed a thing along the way. We love the grind and that’s what makes us appreciate it all the more.
5. gives you more understanding of others.
Empathy is ‘the ability to understand and share the feelings of another’. This in itself is a whole other topic of conversation that we can cover at a later time, but for now, failing can absolutely help you in understanding what others are going through.
Even if the struggles are different, having gone through some failings yourself can put you in a good position when faced with a situation where someone would like your help. If they want advice you can give some, or if they want to be left alone, you can probably understand why, as you may have felt the same at some stage yourself.
To conclude.
At first glance, the word ‘fail’ can seem quite harsh and pessimistic. But nothing should be farther from the truth. As Michael Jordan said ‘I’ve failed over and over and that is why I succeed’. Whether its sporting, personal, or career driven, it’s important to see failure as an opportunity to learn and grow your mindset.
Even though I have used the word a lot, try not to focus negatively on the actual word ‘fail’. It’s about turning the potentially negative concept of failing around and using it to your advantage to make sure the next time (or the time after that) is a win for you.
Show me someone who has never failed. You won’t be able to because we all have at some stage, its just that some fail better than others.
Loved this one!
Yes, failing is not this big demon of destruction and yet, so many are so afraid of it, they instead choose to give up mid-way or never even try! I think that’s where children are wonderful: they see their failures as lessons every single day and never stop learning from them because otherwise they wouldn’t be able to grow up! It’s a shame people lose that thrive to live along the way.
Agnes, thanks so much for the comment!
It’s very unfortunate some people seem to go from late teens to twenties and onwards and that fear of failure starts to set in and holds them back. If people can embrace failure they will be all the better for it!
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