Success Information

Failure IS an option.


I wrote an article on this very subject, with the same title a few years ago. And? it was a pretty decent article if I do say so myself!

Then I lost it. Gone. Deleted in error with no backup!

Talk about 'ironic'??..

Well, moving forward (hint) - over the years I have come into contact with a vast array of different people from all walks of life. Some extremely rich, then those quite the opposite. Some very well-known - others who will never want their '15 minutes of fame'.

Business people, colleagues, employees, friends?? the list goes on and on.

They ALL (just like you and me) have one thing in common. Failure.

Yep - we are ALL failures at something. Or we have all failed at one to or another?.. And it's more than likely we will all fail again at something.

Hands up all of you who have NEVER failed at ANYTHING?

Relationships, work / employment, exams, dieting, keep fit & exercise, decorating, gardening, keeping pets, D.I.Y., money, puzzles, competitions, cooking, gambling, auditions, interviews?and just about everything!

It doesn't have to be a massive 'failure' - sometimes these do happen, but anything which goes wrong, you mess up, you can't do?.. Is failure.

Most marriages end up in divorce. Most new small-businesses in the real world, collapse within their first two years. Most people trying to make money on the internet - don't.

The KEY here, is what you do when it happens? How do you deal with it? What happens next?

The solution is a simple formula I have been telling people for years. Whether it's friends, clients, staff, peers??. Whether I do it as part of a motivational course, or just straight-forward advice?. The formula is exactly the same.

How you apply the formula can vary from 'Passive Pre-Event Style'?. up to 'Aggressive Post-Event Style.

What am I talking about?

It's like flicking a switch inside you?? from the passive ' I know all the steps'?? to the more aggressive ' I've GOTTA DO IT NOW?.'

Have you ever seen the classic comedy film 'Airplane' ?

The Cabin Crew carefully explained all the safety procedures to the passengers. But when 'disaster strikes' - all hell breaks loose! Everyone panics! All the instructions go out the window!

OK - it was a movie. But the similarities to real-life are commonplace.

We often know what we SHOULD DO - but we find excuses to ignore it. If you simply 'give up' and do nothing - what are you expecting as a result?

"It wasn't my fault?." ? maybe it wasn't.
"The system doesn't work"?.. So what?
"Someone told me to do it"?.. and if they told you to jump off a cliff?
"The computer made a mistake"?? oh really?!
"Someone criticised me"?? Get over it.
"I'm just not good enough"?? Choose not to be.

OK - time for a few sayings??.. And hey!? these weren't written by someone for no reason!

'Try?..try?..and try again.'

'If you always do what you've always done, you will always get what you've always had'.

I really like that last one - perhaps the 'exact' wording is slightly wrong, but the underlying meaning in rock-solid (and it may take a minute or two understand where it's going).

If you prefer to make excuses and simply quit - fair enough. Your choice. But if you simply aren't happy with this option?.. Then there are 3 main stages you must address.

Firstly, you have to simply accept it. Admit to yourself that you have failed. Sounds easy doesn't it? But in reality it can be far harder than you think.

This part is vital because it can mean a change in attitude. YOURS. Stop blaming others, making excuses and simply giving up. This can be a major change in mind-set, but is important before you can go to the next step. Accept that 'it' hasn't worked. 'It' went wrong. 'It' is a dead-end. Don't personalise / humanise it. The 'acceptance' stage normally cannot be successful until the initial anger of the failure has subsided.

Next - another key step is to Learn from it.

Analyse the situation. Review what happened. Make notes. Discuss it with people / friends / colleagues?. But do so clearly and with an open-mind. Try to develop new methods, routines, rules?. which will avoid a recurrence of what happened last time.

Note - if during the 'learning' stage, you start to point the finger at others, or blame the system etc., this means you haven't successfully passed the first stage - Acceptance.

Once you have learned from it - the final stage is simple. MOVE ON. Move forward - don't keep looking back, don't let things hold you back. Because once you have accepted it, learned from it - then nothing should be able to hold you back. Take what you have learned, apply it, use it - get on with it!

A little warning here. Sometimes it simply won't work. You will get through the stages, do everything right - only to fail again. If this happens, just go back to step 2 - and start again.

Remember one of those sayings earlier? ?.. Try, try and try again.

SO, the formula is simply.

F + A + L + M.

Fail.
Accept it.
Learn from it.
Move on.

You can use your own variant to suit your needs. And this applies to business (both online and offline), plus everything in life.

However, do you remember the second 'saying' from earlier on? 'If you always do what you've always done, you will always get what you've always had'.

Successful people - whether they are millionaire business people, or perhaps those who seem to be 'lucky in love', to people who overcome adversity, injury, accident or disability -all have one thing in common.

They don't quit when the going gets tough.
They accept, learn and move on from failure.

There is a phrase?. 'Failure is not an option'.

I disagree. Failure isn't something you should strive for (obviously) but if you know how to deal with it when it arises, then it's not necessarily the end of the World!

An article by Gary Durkin, Founder of the Internet Advice Center®
http://www.InternetAdviceCenter.com

Gary has more than a decade of offline international business success behind him, controlling millions of dollars of global investments each day and has been doing business online for 6 years.

If you would like to join thousands of subscribers to his newsletter 'Delivering Success' - send a blank email to deliveringsuccess@kioskcities.ws

© Copyright 2005 - All Rights Reserved worldwide.

You are free to distribute this article, providing it remains unchanged and with the resource / bio box attached.


MORE RESOURCES:

Global CIO: A 10-Point Plan For Success In 2009
InformationWeek, NY - 3 hours ago
Your letter mentioned my 2008 success in data-center consolidation, but we could have had even more success if Susan hadn't stonewalled my attempts to ...
CIO Replies To CEO: 10 Reasons To Keep Me Information Week Weblog
all 9 news articles


GulfNews

Analysis: Iran's stake in the success of Hamas's 'resistance'
Jerusalem Post, Israel - 42 minutes ago
By JONATHAN SPYER Over the weekend, Saeed Jalili, secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, met with Syrian President Bashar Assad and Hamas ...
Rockets From Lebanon Hit Israel; Gaza Conflict Widens Bloomberg
all 500 news articles


Korea Herald

Nearly Utah 60 schools recognized for success
Salt Lake Tribune, United States - 2 hours ago
By Lisa Schencker The Utah State Office of Education honored 56 schools with Utah Title I High Performing School Awards on Tuesday and three schools with ...
Aggressive overhauls of troubled schools should be examined Honolulu Star-Bulletin
all 10 news articles


CharlotteObserver.com

GM leverages Chinese success to reinvent LaCrosse
The Associated Press - 3 hours ago
DETROIT (AP) — With help from its design team in China, General Motors Corp. is trying to reinvigorate the Buick brand with its 2010 LaCrosse luxury sedan. ...
GM leverages Chinese success to reinvent LaCrosse Fox 28
2010 Buick Allure Autonet
all 83 news articles


Voice of America

China experts score success against snail fever
Reuters - 9 hours ago
HONG KONG, Jan 8 (Reuters) - Chinese scientists appear to have found a formula to get rid of "snail fever", an age-old but neglected tropical disease ...
Scientists Cite China's Success in Controlling 'Snail Fever' Voice of America
all 7 news articles


Keys to Success for a New Leader
New York Times, United States - 3 hours ago
By Toni Monkovic Tony Sparano, Mike Smith and John Harbaugh had remarkable success in their first seasons as NFL coaches. The Jets will be looking for a ...


Illinois State's success could be boon for coach Tim Jankovich
Chicago Tribune, United States - 4 hours ago
By John Mullin | Tribune reporter Illinois State lost its undefeated season Tuesday at Bradley. What the Redbirds may need to work on before long is not ...


TVNZ

Low-key Eli Manning key to success of New York Giants' offence
The Canadian Press,  N.J. - 8 hours ago
Because you have had some success, it doesn't change your mentality or the way you approach things." Manning's closest friends on the team are the offensive ...
Eagles Notes: Success exists from red zone to the end zone Philadelphia Inquirer
Philadelphia Eagles at New York Giants NFL Odds & Picks Locksmith Sports Picks
all 707 news articles


Recipe for Success: Presidio Helps Food Industry Manufacturers ...
MSNBC - 10 hours ago
To demonstrate how the adoption of new network infrastructure can be achieved while significantly reducing up-front costs, Presidio cites the successes of ...


Product Reviews

ARMing GNU/Linux Netbooks for Success in 2009
ComputerworldUK, UK - 21 hours ago
One of the surprises of 2008 was the runaway success of the ultaportable/netbook form factor. Now that systems running Windows XP are available people tend ...
Analysis: Did Intel underestimate netbook success? EETimes.com
all 132 news articles

Success - Google News

home | site map
© 2006