Motivation Monday - Falling Helps You Succeed

Falling.

Failing.

It hurts.

It sucks.

We avoid it at all costs - after all, we were taught that in school, if we fail a test, or fall off the monkey bars, we're not going to pass our classes, we're going to be laughed at, we aren't going to be "cool", or "rich" or, "successful".

So we do everything we can to avoid falling, everything we can to avoid failing.

And honestly? It's the saddest thing in human history.

That we should be so afraid of failing, of falling.

Now, certainly, we need to be cautious - walking unsecured on the top of a high rise building, or venturing everything you own on a high-risk business or stock endeavour is probably not super smart, but there is a difference between caution and being outright risk-averse.

I've failed.

Again and again.

I've fallen.

Over and over.

I have embarrassed myself, and struggled, lost and stumbled more times than I can count.

I have been humbled to the very ground.

Over and over.

And you know what?

I regret nothing.

Sure, I would have loved to have cruised through childhood without accumulating the numerous battle scars, physical and mental, that I have accrued.

It would have been great to have passed high school the first time, gone to college, gotten a great corporate job with good pay.

It would have been great to have had an easy time of entrepreneurship the first time around.

Heck, even just to have gardens that don't look like weeds exploded everywhere 5 minutes after I've "finished" weeding them, would be great!

But the fact is, all of that heartbreak, heartache, loss, all of those weeds, and grinding day after day to save a couple of pennies to put towards my certifications, workshops, my businesses (this is my fourth business, if anyone is counting), all of it has helped me become the person I am.

All of it.

Especially the negative.

Why?

Because the glory is not in never failing - that basically means you've given up on life. If you never fail it means you never try.

The glory lies in trying, failing and then getting back up to try again.

As Theodore Roosevelt said in his incredible speech, known to many as "The Man in the Arena" speech,

"It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat."

If you never try, you'll never fail, true.

But you'll never know the triumph of victory when something finally goes right and you're sitting in front of your laptop, shocked to stillness and speechlessness that it's working, and people are actually paying you to do what you love and are so passionate about.

You'll never know the thrill of the chase, when something doesn't work, and you're so engrossed in figuring out how to make it work, how to make it happen, that you forget it's dinnertime and you should probably eat something because your stomach is growling loud enough to make your dog bark at the noise.

You'll never know the satisfaction of thinking back to those bullies who said you were never going to be anything but poor trash, and knowing that even though they can't see you now, you've proven them all wrong.

You've even proven yourself wrong - because deep down, sometimes we don't try because we think we can't do it. Because we don't believe in ourselves.

But we can. YOU can.

YOU can prove yourself wrong.

But you have to try.

Any you're going to fail.

You're going to fall.

But that's exactly when you learn that all of those times you stumbled, you were building strength.

All of those times you flailed around trying to figure out what to do, you were building those wings.

And that it might not be the next time, or even the next, but at some point, you're going to fall, and instead of having to pull yourself up, tired and weary, you're going to spread those wings you've been building, those beautiful, strong, broad wings.

And you're going to fly.

You're going to fly, and shout at the sky for joy as you soar to all of the heights you never even dreamed you could reach, tears streaming down your face.

You're going to roar at the heavens, proud of yourself for trying, failing, and trying again.

Because all that matters is that you try and get up even one more time than you fall and fail.

And that one time you succeed.... miraculous.

And I can't wait to see it and cheer you on with a huge smile on my face, so proud of you and happy that you were willing to fail to succeed.

Hugs,

Meghann