Learning to dance in the rain

Society denounces failure; late submissions, lost sales, missed goals, they are all considered signs of weakness and inability. On the other hand, success is lauded. Success is coveted so highly that the media in the form of books, films, television, articles and seminars, have spent countless hours dissecting success in all its forms, how it comes about and how it can be obtained.  

But what is success? How can it be quantified so that it can be analysed. Those who have taken it upon themselves to perform the analysis have individual predetermined views of what success is, and only when they have outlined this arbitrary (and usually financial figure) can they begin to experiment with what works. 

Success cannot be quantified. Much like happiness, success is a subjective and individual state of mind. Goals are great, and goals are necessary, but goals are asymptotic, like the horizon; they continue to move further away the closer you get. If you define success with a number, you'll never get there, and if by some chance you do reach it and there is nothing else, then what is there left to live for?

Success in the pursuit of health is commonly littered with failures. People will commit to a programme sincerely and honestly, they will make promises and implement changes. Time passes well, but then they encounter an unexpected obstacle and they fail. 

The way a successful person will deal with this is by embracing the failure, by reflecting upon it and asking honest questions of themselves. They use it as a tool for self improvement. They experience a period of contrast to when things were going well. This comes from the acceptance that no one is perfect and only a mediocre person lives their life at their best. It also allows closure, by accepting and embracing failure the issue is put to bed. The alternative where people deliberately avoid thinking about failure leaves only one thing on the mind.

Every failure is an opportunity to grow, and by allowing the insecurity of risk into your life you allow yourself the freedom to achieve your potential. Success is when you get back up again after you fall, when you hold onto the desire to achieve, when you have the strength of conviction to start again stronger than before.

So judge yourself on your integrity, on your resolve and your ability to thrive despite the setbacks. Judge your success on your own terms and from your own experiences by thinking of failure not as a stunt on growth, but as an accelerator.

Refs
Rajneesh, B (1999). Courage (The Joy of Living Dangerously). 2nd ed. New York: St Martin's Press. foreword.

Crane, F., Crane, E.. (2007). Dispositional Optimism and Entrepreneurial Success. The Psychologist-Manager Journal. 10 (1), p13-25.


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