Sam shares personal stories about failure and fear, arguing that failure is a learning opportunity, not an endpoint. He offers practical ways to move past the fear that stops you from trying.
You might be asking yourself, is it okay to fail? Or maybe it sounds something like, can I give myself the ability or comfort to fail and of course, then not beat myself up afterwards? And to be honest, I totally get that you may have clicked on this video because a bad thing or some bad things have happened in your life and that you might be beating yourself up right now. Trust me, I've been there and done that. Fail, that is. I've got a great story that I've never shared with the world before. But first, there's a quote by C.S. lewis that I think may help you stop beating yourself up if you are. Right now, C.S. lewis said, failures are fingerposts on the road to achievement. So in my mind, if you're not failing, you're not achieving. And that, to me, is a slow death. Now join me as I bask in the historical pain of one of my worst failures ever. You see, not too long ago, I worked at a company where we put on events where we would train folks how to communicate better and how to leverage workshops to impact their business. Trust me when I tell you that it was a blast. And so many people were dramatically impacted in a positive way. However, there was this one time that I was setting up for an event and I forgot to read the very small print for the location we chose to have the event at. Now, by itself, this wouldn't be a big deal, but when, for some unknown reason, no one signed up for the event, it became a humongous, I mean, extremely big problem. You see, we had put down a $12,000 deposit, and there was literally no way to get that money back. I was stressed beyond belief, my boss was pissed, and at first, I never wanted to do another event again. Ever. I mean, ever. No events. You see, to say that I had a bad taste in my mouth over the entire situation was a slight understatement. But when the initial shock wore off and I had time to digest what had happened, I realized a couple of things. First, it was going to be okay. The world didn't end and money can be replaced or made again. And I learned to never sign anything, anything without reading the small print. Oh, come on. You know you've done it, too. Next time, stop and read the small print. It's small for a reason. But as I walked out of the ashes of this travesty, I also realized I had learned a very valuable lesson. And it was that how to pick myself up, dust myself off, and get back to work. It's kind of funny, but I had learned that lesson earlier in life when I trained horses and would get bucked off once, if not several times times by a spirited horse learning that they had a new master telling them what to do and where to go. And speaking of masters, many folks I see have a fear of failing as their master. They don't step out in faith because fear or the false perception of failing has them chained down to living a small and what might be typical life versus a life beyond their default, the life that they dream of. And I have to ask is that you, are you chained down by the fear of failing? Listen, it's okay to fail. Failing is just another life, less a story, a moment in time to help create who you will be after that failure. I use air quotes there because I truly don't believe in failing. I believe in lessons. I also subscribe to the camp that you hear so many inspirational speakers talking about and that is failing forward. Or as I think about it, learn your way to the life of your dreams. Or like Samuel Beckett says, ever tried, ever failed. No matter, try again, fail again, fail better. So if you're chained down by past failures or the perception of possible future failures, I want to give you several tips to help you move forward and potentially change your mental position on this topic of failure. Number one, Remember, you're not a failure just because you had a setback. You are not a failure. The person who sits in their house and doesn't try to make big moves is failing harder than you ever will. A setback is one or two steps back, but the lessons you learn could Skip, skyrocket you 5, 7, 15 steps towards your journey. Number two, be constructive and learn from this situation. This goes hand in hand with number one. But take time to break down what happened, what decisions you made, look at the outcome and potentially project what may have happened if you made another decision or stop and think. Was there some other decision I could have made that I originally didn't even see? Stop, accept, analyze, and then take action. Number three, Remind yourself anyone who wants to do things of value in life will fail. It kills me when people are shocked they failed. I mean, don't get me wrong, I've shocked the crap out of myself many times in my early years, but now I live a life with this almost understanding or knowing that failure is just around the corner. However, I don't know what corner, but whatever corner it is, I know it'll be there. So I refuse to be shocked by it. You see, I realize I'm trying to be a person of value, a catalyst in my own and others lives. Failure is inevitable and I'm at peace knowing that. And finally, number four, let it out into the light. Hence why I shared my big enormous freaking lesson. Anyway, why I shared my story in this video. You see, you have to shine a big bright spotlight on your perceived failures so that they cannot sit in the dark and fester in your brain. If you're like like me many times I can be my worst enemy and a failure left to thrive in the dark can paralyze me for weeks, heck, maybe even years. But a hefty dose of light kills that dastardly failure and lets you move forward in life faster. So make sure you pick up these mental tips for your own life. Remember that Michael Jordan said I can accept failure. Everyone fails at some time, but I can't accept not trying. Then try your best and work your butt off at accomplishing your life goals. You do have goals, right? That, my friend, is probably a whole nother video. So while you're on this fantastic no failure journey, make sure you like the video. Share it with a friend if they need to hear it. And of course, hit that subscribe button and the bell as well so you get all the lessons you need to live a life beyond your default. And remember along the way to be a happy, helpful, humble, healthy human. I'll be here cheering you on and I'll see you in the next video. Sam.
