When I dropped out of University about three years ago because of my inability to love school and fit it, I felt like the biggest failure in the world. I remember walking around, feeling as if I had a big 'F' burnt into my forehead. It was one of the darkest moments of my life.
But I learnt a single lesson that changed my whole outlook: failure is just like a bump on the road to success. You may hit your foot against it, fall down, but if you rise up again, you are assured of success.
Yes, the road to success is not smooth. It has never been. Rather, it is the road to failure that is quite smooth. What I mean is that to achieve success, we often have to exert ourselves, work hard against our natural inclination to laziness and lethargy. It is easier to end up unsuccessful than successful. Yes, as it often is, the bad things are easier to get than the nice things.
Most people give up and stop trying the first time they come across a hurdle. The problem they have is thinking the road to success is smooth. It has a lot of bumps. These bumps are often in the form of failures. No one gets it right the first time. Hardly anyone does.
It was indeed a dark time in my life, just after dropping out of school, as I said earlier. I was thinking I was really done for, and that I'll never ever succeed at anything. But then something changed. My perspective changed. I began to feel as is failure was simply a door to opportunities I never knew existed. At that point, a little light streaked in. I realized my failure could afford me to explore new avenues that I never knew existed, and what is more; it could really allow me to find what I really loved. And I did. And I am anything but a failure at it.
Sometimes failure is simple a sign, a signal that you ought to re-work and re-think certain strategies. It should prompt you to ask yourself: 'Where have I gone wrong? What could I have done better?'
And at other times, it is simply a signal that you need to abandon your current course altogether! If you fail in a certain venture, it might be simply because you are on the wrong road and that there is something out there better for you. That's what happened in my case.
As I said earlier, I dropped out of school because I never loved it. I felt boxed in, hemmed in. I felt what I was studying was going to have me imprisoned for the rest of my life--seated in an office heeding to someone's ruthless commands. That's not what I wanted. I wanted to be free. Be my own boss. Do what I fancy when and where I wanted it.
And so, when I failed, well, let's just say I had it coming. But failure begets opportunity. If only people could see this, they cannot be so worked up by this. I found myself an online business, worked hard at it, and now it is beginning to give out returns. Cool!
It is at this moment that it is really hitting me: If I had not failed, I would not be here, doing what I love, being my own boss.
People often say that to every bad thing there's a good side. I do not want to argue over this, but there must be some truth to it. What I can say is that oftentimes, when something bad happens, say failure, there is often an opportunity lurking somewhere, waiting to be exploited. Like in my case, there was. And I can safely say that one of the best things that ever happened to me was my failure.
So I want you to glean from this and get motivated. To fail or to succeed, most of the time, is your own choice. If you encounter failure on the road to success, you can choose to quit altogether, or you can choose to get up and keep on moving. But I'll encourage you to KEEP ON MOVING!
Have you encountered failure? Get up. Re-evaluate. Why did you fail? What did you not do right? What can you do better this time? Do you have to change strategies, or take up an entirely different course?
Failure is also a learning experience. We glean from our past mistakes, is the adage. We learn and ensure that we never repeat them. We learn and we grow, and we become stronger, invincible.
By the way, I am back in school, studying what I love and ready to change the world. Join me. Get up and realize your true potential. Get up and succeed.
For all of you moping over failure, this story I wrote might just revamp your spirits! Enjoy reading:
http://www.writing-lovers.com/best-ally.html
Specialized in analyzing social issues through my stories, I am a writer who loves what he does, and who is built by what he does, and who desires to effect change through his writing.