I posed a question on my Facebook page where I asked “If you knew you couldn’t fail what would your life be like?” The responses I received were very interesting. Some stated that they would take more risks.
Others said they would go for their dreams, pursue their passions. These statements started me thinking that the words “fail or failure” are just as impeding to our lives as the word “fear”. But what if you couldn’t fail? And just what does “fail” mean anyway?
Dictionary.com defines fail as “to fall short of success or achievement in something expected, attempted, desired, or approved”. Failure is defined as “nonperformance of something due, required, or expected.”
These definitions seems negative and self-defeating to me. Shouldn’t the fact that an attempt was made at something be cause for celebration? Yes, I know….Yoda is in my head saying “Do or do not, there is no try.”
But if we hold the belief that in all experiences there is a positive to be had, then doesn’t it make sense that when we try to accomplish something, the act of stepping up in and of itself is the positive to be had? I think so. So, let’s look at the concept of fail/failure again.
If we hold to the belief that there is a positive to be gained in all experiences then we cannot fail!
When you view your life experience looking for the positive aspects in all things, then every experience is a success because you’ve discovered something you didn’t know before or you found something to be thankful for that you may not have realized. Here’s an example:
You want to attract a loving relationship into your life experience. You define what it is you want in a partner and visualize what it feels like to have that in your life.
An opportunity to go to a speed dating event appears to you so you act on it, even though it’s something you’ve never done before and a little out of your comfort zone.
The event does not go the way you had hoped and you don’t meet your “Mr. Right”. However, in attending this event, you met many different men that allowed you to further define the qualities and characteristics of the type of man you do want in your life.
This enabled you to clarify your desire. In addition, you discovered that while this type of event was out of your comfort zone, you did enjoy yourself. Would you call this a failure or a success?
If you approach life with a positive nature, this event was a success because you were able to get clearer on the type of person you want AND you learned that you could have a good time in a strange social situation. It’s all in perspective.
Look for the positive aspects in all things and you take failure out of the equation! When you take failure out of the equation then it’s NOT an option in your life.
Imagine that for a moment….going through life KNOWING that you cannot fail because you CHOOSE to see the positive aspects in all experiences.
Doesn’t that feel good? Seeing the positive aspects means that you never fall short of success or achievement because EVERY experience is a success or achievement.
Nonperformance transforms into performance for the simple fact that you did something and learned something in the process. So, now that you know you cannot fail, what will your life be like?
Action Steps:
Your assignment for this month is to look back on all the items in your life that you (or someone else) labeled as a failure and search for the positive aspects. Define what you learned about yourself or others.
Did the experience help you to further clarify your desires or spark a new desire within you? Was the experience a step outside your comfort zone thereby causing you to stretch and grow?
Write it all down and then look at all the positive aspects for which you can show gratitude and appreciation.
Notice how you are feeling as you gaze at all the positive aspects. Is there warmth in your heart center? A sense of pride and accomplishment? Feels good, doesn’t it?
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Elaine C. Torrance-Gingrich – www.avalonianmoon.com.
