Failure: a step to success
and cultivating Grit everyday ...
In our class yesterday, we were watching a TED Talk - Angela Duckworth: Grit - what it means, how important it is in our day to day life. Grit is about passion and perseverance. It's about knowing that we are here for the long term, not for the short-term or for the instant gratification, but to make sure that our path forward is set up for success.
And how we can learn to embrace failure with a growth mindset. One of my students shared an NBA player’s response on what failure means for him. Very well articulated that we need to trust the process. And that there is no failure in sports and I would like to believe that is true for anything and everything we put our heart and mind to do.
That's the beauty of failure. We are afraid. We're not sure what it will mean for us, but when we fall down, we get up back again.. and again.. always..
What does failure look like?
Nothing can stop us. This is the power within. Channel the inner energy to find what it means for you to FAIL and then reroute that energy into something beautiful. Something more meaningful than what failure even means for you. For me, failure was letting down - Letting down people, letting down my team, letting down the company, letting down my family. And I carried it with me for a very long time. That I couldn't afford to fail. Whereas the truth was the only way for me to have that next step to success was to fail. I needed to push my boundaries. I needed to know that it's okay to not know. I started to move from ALL CAPS in FAIL to small caps fail. And I started to trust the process.
If I had all the answers, then life would be pretty boring. As an explorer and traveler, I'm learning that the new experiences that I get to see and feel is what makes me feel alive. I have an opportunity to keep challenging the status quo. To say that it's okay to not have all the answers, but it's not okay to avoid challenges or take shortcuts.
Every day is a new day, this is our opportunity to make the most out of it. Some days are good, some days are bad. And that's okay. That's the circle of life. That's what we are all here, for — to try, try, till we succeed.
Set your moonshot goal and make magic happen.
The recipe for failure
Whether you like cooking or not, here is a test or experiment for y’all. And if it isn’t cooking, find a parallel activity to flex your failure muscle. One that is stubborn and needs to take it easy a bit.
When I am trying a new recipe to cook, I am following my intuition to see how the ingredients join forces with the heat and fire, to make something tasty and new. Now, not all the dishes come out good, but I have a few moments of joy. But each time, it’s the process that I pay attention to. How long I saute the onions makes a big difference to have the right foundation and base for the dish. And it was about patience and taking the time to do it well. No shortcuts. To give it the time it needs.
Now take the same analogy for your next idea or project. Discover a process that is fail-proof for you, and one that is giving you the room to fail and experiment.
There is always a sunrise after the sunset. Be ready for the moment.
Trust the Process
So, immerse yourself in the baby steps and enjoy the moments in the process. And please trust the process. Today might look like a difficult day. And that's okay. Tomorrow is another day. We are going to rise. And we are going to be better because of it. Whatever is happening right now is only happening in this moment in time. Think about the clouds. The clouds move on. And when we learn to let our thoughts move on, that's, Mindfulness for me. It allows my ideas, my thoughts, my emotions, my worries to have its place in the moment. And that's it.
Learning to let go and experience the little joys of life and sometimes even the sorrows. And that's okay. We are all in this process together to figure life out and help each other be the best that we will ever be.
Cheers to failing with intention and purpose.
And I wish you all the very best in whatever you do or don't do.