Wait, what? Failure’s a good thing now?
Why yes, yes it is.
You don’t learn much when you’re on top of the world and all your days are smooth like butter.
You don’t know who you are and what you’re capable of when everything you want falls in your lap because of your pedigree, looks, or connections.
And you don’t build any muscle or stamina when you float through life like an orange kite in the clear blue sky.
You grow stronger when you get back on your feet each time you’re knocked down.
You get better when you go back to basics and fix whatever went wrong the first time, the fifth time, or even the tenth time.
You amplify your stamina when you stay in the arena even when you’re bruised, bleeding, and swaying on your feet.
So why does failure have such a bad rap?
Because you and I confuse our self-worth with the quality of our performance, and that never ends well.
“Nobody’s buying my book! I suck.”
“Ugh, another week of no comments on my blog post. Why do I even bother?”
“Sigh, nobody’s watching my Instagram Stories. My followers hate me.”
You may not get the results you want, when you want, and how you want, but you’re still a beautiful, incredible human being with a tonne to offer. You’re still bold, brilliant, and one-of-a-kind amazing, so why’re you tripping?
Yes, it hurts to fail. No creative wants to experience the agony of launches that flop, businesses that fold, or books/albums/movies that stay dead in the water no matter what you try.
But what if it’s just another phase in your journey?
What if you need to get the not-so-great stuff out of the way before there’s space for the spectacular to flow through you as it blooms in your heart, mind, and soul?
What if you need to ramp up your skills so your art is brighter, sharper, and more compelling to your target audience?
Isn’t it worth it to fail if you blossom afterwards? Because you are gonna fail, and you gotta be ready to roll with the punches without crumbling, losing your mind, or killing your dreams.
Fail Up, Not Down
You fail up when you tweak your process(es) to get better results. You switch up your daily habits and elevate your art because you’re stronger, faster, and a heck of a lot wiser.
You fail down when you give up on something that matters to you because you’re too embarrassed or discouraged to go on. The critics are dissing you, you’re bleeding money, and even your family thinks it’s time to cut your losses and move on.
Failing up is how you evolve. Failing down is how you stagnate, and that’s not why you’re here.
You’re here to glow, to soar, to dream out loud and leave this world better than you met it.
Can you do any of that if you never fail up because your ego’s in the way?
No. You. Can’t.
So dust yourself off, wiggle your shoulders, and get back to work. Let your brilliant out to play. Your gorgeous art and your tribe are waiting.
And if you wanna celebrate failing up with me, come on over to The Superstar Creative Backstage and fill up on rocket fuel for your creative tank.
This rocks😘😘😘😘😘😘.
YAY! Thank you! 😀
I love the failing up bit😊
Haha, me too! Every step counts!