Got Grit: Do You Have What It Takes to Power Through Failure?

We’re all familiar with the phrase, “to fail is to succeed.” And there’s no doubt, we’ve all experienced failure – believe me I have had my fair share of failures. It’s not a good feeling, but it’s a part of life. Hopefully, we dust ourselves off from the mistake and move on with a stronger determination not to fail again. Sometimes we succeed, and sometimes, well, we fail again.

Failure is an inevitable part of life, and often, when we learn why we failed at something, we come out of the situation stronger and smarter. It is when we take proper pause to reflect upon our mistakes, figure out a better, more effective course to succeed, we become resilient and gritty; we’re steadfast, ready to give it another try.

“Success is not final, failure is not fatal:

it is the courage to continue that counts.” 

- Winston Churchill

Unfortunately, failure can have a powerful effect on people, so much that some throw in the towel never to make that mistake again. However, by surrendering, you’re doing a huge disservice to yourself. You’re allowing yourself to lose, shutting yourself out of potential future opportunities for success.

When we take a braver more ferocious approach to our failures, we win. We muster up the confidence to correct the occurrence and move forward with fortitude, purpose, and stick-to-itiveness to follow our passion and goals.

Don’t close the door to your failures. Learn from them and power on with these proven strategies.

Shut Out the Noise
Don’t listen to the naysayers or get caught up in the woulda, coulda, shoulda negative self-talk. If we paid attention to the excessive noise, there would be very few successes out there. Rather, listen to your gut. Pay attention to what you want. Trust yourself to try again.

Ignite Your Growth Mindset
Often, when we fail at something, it is because we didn’t do this or that the right way. Take advantage of the mistake by educating yourself. Immerse yourself in a class, read about the subject, talk to others who are experts in the field. Having a growth mindset will help you reframe your approach to challenges. It will keep the fire in your belly ignited while motivating you to work harder to improve skills.

Believe In Yourself
There’s no doubt our egos get bruised when things don’t go the right way. We work hard to hone our craft, and the last thing we want in return is a negative outcome. When we develop our confidence, it can help mend our failures. When we believe in ourselves and our abilities, we can overcome obstacles. Start by taking an inventory of your talents and strengths. You’ll realize you’ve got what it takes. Give yourself a pep talk and know you owe it to yourself to pursue your passion. When you persevere, your confidence will grow. When your confidence grows, success will follow.

Try, Try, Try, Again
Talk to any successful person, and he or she will tell you, success does not come easy. It’s a lot of work, fraught with many challenges. Luck does not have anything to do with it. Success comes with grit, determination, and confidence. When we embed these successful character traits within us day after day, we are easily equipped to fall off the horse and get back on the horse. We don’t look at failure as the endgame. Rather, we’re prepared and fueled to try, try, try again. 

About the Author: 

Nancy Schnoebelen Imbs is an empowering professional development consultant, dynamic motivational speaker and author. Highly dedicated and results-oriented, she has the skill and passion for helping individuals become more confident and successful in business and beyond. She and her company Polished help clients focus on key adjustments that result in meaningful impact and effectiveness.