I’m sure you haven’t failed 5000 times, so you cannot be called a failure just yet. If Thomas Edison wasn’t, then you are not. Edward Bliss wrote, “Success does not mean the absence of failure, it means the attainment of ultimate objectives. It means winning the war, not every battle.”
The sheer fact that you flunked a test, fumbled at an interview, or incurred losses in a business doesn’t mean you are a failure. Yes, you failed but you are not a failure.
Truth is liberating, you should understand what failure really is. Failure is:
A choice
A choice is actively or passively made. When you quit and give up the quest for success, then you’ve chosen to be a failure. As long as you keep trying, you are not a failure. Margaret Thatcher said, “You may have to fight a battle more than once to win it.” Mike Ditka also noted “You are never a loser until you quit trying.” A passive or active decision to stop trying is real failure.
A capitulation
When you yield to circumstances, popular opinion and perception, then you are a failure. Do not wait for the world to define you. Eleanor Roosevelt said, “No one can make you feel inferior without your consent.” The truth is that some people might pass caustic comments at you as a result of the unpalatable circumstances you find yourself in, but their words should have no hold on you more than water poured into a perforated bowl. Everyone is entitled to their opinion, Therefore, people’s views shouldn’t define you.
A conception
The perspective with which you view events and circumstances speak volumes as to whether you have been cowered by the chilling hand of failure or not. If a glass cup is filled halfway, one person will say it is half-filled (positive perception) another will say it is half-empty (negative perception). You see, failure is in the mind. How depressing a situation looks is determined by how it is perceived from within.
See? It all depends on how you see things. You can choose to see those setbacks as the stepping stones that will catapult you to the next level or keep wallowing in self-pity. Choose to practice the former and develop a positive attitude towards life.
