Posts Tagged ‘success’
Why Failure Is Really a Success
When something doesn’t go your way, what’s the first thought that pops into your head? Do you chastise yourself? Or do you reassure yourself that you are growing stronger and wiser with each challenge you face?
In reality, it’s not the successes that make you a stronger, more successful person; it’s the failures.
This may sound odd, but each failure you have is actually a success. Why, you ask? Because it gives you the opportunity to improve, learn, and try again. Let’s take a look at a couple of the world’s greatest failures that lead to the some of the most ubiquitous inventions of our time.
• Did you know that 3M’s greatest failure was inventing glue that won’t stick? That glue became the basis for the sticky backing on the “Post-It Note.”
• The scientists at Pfizer were trying to create a medication that treated high blood pressure in men. It failed to affect blood pressure, but it had one unexpected side effect. We now know this drug as Viagra and it’s considered one of the most successful failures ever.
This doesn’t necessarily mean that each failure you encounter will land you with an immediate success. But it’s always a stepping-stone along the way.
You Can Only Appreciate Success After You’ve Failed
Thomas Edison had an incredibly positive attitude about failure. When he was questioned as to why so many of his experiments were failures, he responded by saying that he never had a failure in any of his experiments, rather, each experiment helped him discover another way that something would not work. In reality, sometimes the only way to know whether you’ve succeeded is to fail.
Learning How to Deal With Disappointment
Dealing with the disappointment of failure can be tough for adults as well as for children. But everyone experiences failure at some point in their lives and teaching our children how to deal with the disappointment is a critical life lesson.
Can you imagine a young adult, either a teen or college student, dealing with their first failures in the workplace? A tantrum at any age is not appealing, never mind from an adult who should know better.
Consider the very wise words of Winston Churchill who said, “Success is going from failure to failure without losing enthusiasm.” What did he mean exactly? Well here are three reasons why failing is a good thing:
1. Inspiration – Before you laugh, think about your childhood when you didn’t get something right the first time. What did you do? Tried again and again! Each time the thought in your head was, “I am going to get it right this time!” What better motivation do you need?
2. Humility – No one is perfect, sometimes we need to be reminded of that very fact! Can you imagine a world where no one ever failed and we all walked around thinking we were God’s gift to the world?
3. Learning – Success makes you feel good, but failing teaches you a lesson. Think back to the first time you swung a bat, learned to walk, or tried to eat with a fork. Did you do it right the first time? Of course not. Did you figure out with each failure what you were doing wrong? Well if you can swing a bat today, walk and eat with a fork then I guess you did!
Failure brings positive change and success to those who are resilient. Are you?
What questions would you like answered about goal setting?
I am putting together an web based seminar on goal setting and want to know what problems and issues people have with setting goals (private or business) in their lives. Any feed-back, problems or success stories about goal setting are welcome.
Putting Your Action into Overdrive
If you are seeking success in your life, you will need to learn how to take positive action every day to accomplish your goals. After all, doing the least amount of work will likely lead to mediocre results, so instead, put your actions into overdrive and make the most of your efforts.
You can truly make every action you take a positive one that builds momentum and propels you forward. You’ll feel better about what you’re doing, and your gusto for life will inspire those around you.
Turning Positive Action into a Positive Life
When you put your best foot forward in all that you do, you’ll develop an intense passion that will be unmatched. Sometimes you may feel like sitting back and doing as little as possible, but you’ll actually enjoy your life more when you are engaged in the things you love to do.
Life is more fulfilling when you are passionate about your work and family. Even though it may seem challenging to look at everything with passionate and positive eyes, such an outlook is possible. If you’re unsure how you can summon more passion for a project or task, there is one tool that will help you build momentum by utilizing the power of a positive mindset. So what is it? Positive affirmations!
What Are Affirmations All About?
Affirmations can help you take positive action by re-defining how you think and feel. In essence, affirmations are positive statements that activate your mind and encourage you to push forward. Once you implement affirmations into your life, negative, self-defeating thoughts will be a thing of the past.
If you need a positive thought, for example, you can say something as simple as, "I infuse my mind, heart, and spirit with past accomplishments, new ideas, and a fresh attitude." Constantly repeating positive affirmations will help you create a positive outlook in just about any situation imaginable.
Positive affirmations allow you to set your goals, envision them, and reaffirm them each time you state it . This positive statement only needs to be something you desire for yourself and through continued repetition, you can make it your reality. After all, words are powerful because they have the ability to elicit emotion and inspire action.
Affirmations are generally very simple, but they can help you make lasting changes in your life, one step at a time. If you are having a hard time finding the motivation, try an affirmation such as, "I am building momentum with each step I take." As long as your actions are congruent with your positive mindset, you will begin to see and feel results nearly instantly.
Affirmations have the power to change the way you think and feel about yourself. Millions of people are using affirmations every day to help them become happier, healthier, and more balanced individuals. You can put your actions into overdrive and accomplish more in less time. After all, if words can move mountains, imagine what you will be able to do when your thoughts, attitudes and actions are aligned!
Building a Life Full of Success
Do you have friends or family members who have achieved immense success in their lives and you find yourself wishing you could have that the same? Are you filled with envy toward the people who have everything they want?
Most of us experience these feelings from time to time, but instead of allowing jealousy to make you miserable and negative, you can create your own success. After all, you are the only person who can control how you define "success." So instead of spending your time feeling jealous, you can spend your time filling your life with success.
Creating Success for Yourself
Many people spend their lives wondering when success is going to magically appear on their lap but, of course, it never happens this way. If, instead, we spend less time dreaming and more time building, we’d be much happier and success will be well within our grasp.
Rather than waiting passively for success to whisk you away, it’s time to create your own version of success. When you are proactively taking steps every day, you have a better chance of realizing your goals. After all, it’s far more productive than watching other people achieve success.
A great way to create the successful life you have always hoped for is to set clear, actionable goals. How do you want your life to be defined? What do you want to be doing a year from now, five years from now, or even ten years from now? What sort of goals can you set for yourself that will help motivate you and keep you going in the right direction so you can reach out and grab what you want?
You will want to make sure the goals you set are attainable. The best way to do this is to start with short-term goals that help you work towards your long-term goals. This will help you move forward and build momentum without becoming discouraged. Besides, it’ll help to keep your eye on the prize. If you set goals that are too ambitious, you will be more inclined to give up before you even get started.
Building a "Success!" Attitude
Your attitude and thoughts determine your success, so make sure they are congruent. If you have some negative or self-defeating inner dialogues, it will be much more difficult for you to achieve your goals and build the life of success you have always wanted. That’s why it’s a good idea to use the power of positive affirmations to propel you forward.
Affirmations can help people from all walks of life reach great success, even if they started out in the lowest of low places. So remember that success isn’t limited to the rich and famous!
Having a list of affirmations on hand can help you overcome those moments of self-doubt, envy, or even anger that you may feel toward others. Affirmations are simple thoughts like, "Each simple, completed task propels me towards success," or, "I am worthy of great success." These affirmations help to remind you of what your goals are and, in turn, remind you that you are worthy of all you desire, and more!
What’s Your Definition of Success?
What does success really mean to you? It’s important to clarify your thoughts, goals and desires before you can achieve success! You can’t work towards something passionately when you aren’t sure what the end result will be.
Success means many different things to different people. Unfortunately, the tendency is to view monetary gain as success. However, financial wealth is only a small part of overall success.
Different Areas of Success
Because there are different areas of success, you can be successful in one area and unsuccessful in others . In order to develop a plan for your success, you need to make your own list of areas that are relevant to you.
- To achieve overall success in life, you’ll need to examine your priorities in each area.
For many of us, there are 3 main components of success. In your personal plan for success, there may be even more. Be sure to include any areas that are important to you.
Here are the 3 main areas, along with some tips and techniques to help you evaluate your priorities and formulate your success plan:
1. Career. To evaluate your career, contemplate these questions:
- Do you desire a higher status position?
- What amount of income would make you happy?
- Would you simply like to feel appreciated by your boss?
Any number of things can be used to measure your success when it comes to your career.
- In your career evaluation, be sure to determine what strengths and weaknesses you have that can help or hinder you from achieving your goal.
2. Emotional. These questions can guide you to important considerations for your emotional success:
- Are you satisfied with your relationships?
- What have you learned so far that could help you do better in the future?
- If you have children, do you feel successful in how you’re raising them?
- Is your marriage a happy one?
3. Health. Are you doing everything you can to improve your overall well-being? Maybe a change in diet and exercise is in order. Take a moment to evaluate whether you’ve achieved success in this area or if there’s room for improvement.
- If your health can use a boost, make a plan to start implementing changes in your daily routine that lead to a healthier lifestyle.
The Journey to Success
Your journey to success will have highs and lows throughout your life. There will be mistakes and disappointments. You may experience a setback at some point. The beauty is that you can get back on track and move closer to your goals at any time.
- You may achieve new levels of success at different times in your life and career. As you progress in your job, start a family, and get involved in giving back to your community, your definition of success may change, as do your priorities. Go with the flow; it’s okay for your outlook on life and your meaning of success to change over time.
- Love what you do! Life is too short to be stuck doing something you despise. To achieve success in life, work with what you’ve got. Focus on your strengths and interests and do the things that bring those to the forefront of your life.
- Challenges and obstacles are opportunities for improvement and further success. Everyone has setbacks at some point in their lives. If we didn’t, we wouldn’t be human. The successful individual has the confidence that he can and will do better!
Every so often, it’s very important to step back and re-evaluate your idea of success. There are so many changes in life and with each one you’ll find that your priorities change also. Never underestimate the power that comes from persistence and experience, just don’t forget to enjoy the journey!