content | creative | stories

Be Brave Enough To Fail

I tend to have irrational meltdowns approximately three times a day. Sometimes they are fleeting OCD moments of “did I leave the bathroom window open??” after I’ve left my house. (But then refusing to return to check because I’m more of an OCD sympathizer rather than totally committed to the cause.) Other meltdowns however can spiral from fun chats about how I would spend my millions if I won the lottery, to hours of agonising over the fact that I will never be Beyoncé rich and my life as a direct result is devoid of all meaning.

Yes, I understand that money is not everything… but I’m pretty sure I would feel like I’m winning at life whilst partying with Beyoncé and Jay Z… on a yacht… in the Caribbean.

I was having said fun chats with a friend recently about winning the lotto. The type of chats where you genuinely believe you are going to win and have already spent the money on your holiday home in the South of France, that impromptu weekend in Vegas and converting your house into a theme park with a massive slide that goes from your bedroom down into your kitchen.

It was while I was listing all the things I wanted that it made me realise how much I believed I didn’t have. Cue the meltdown…

I spent the rest of the afternoon thinking I had failed at life. My 12 year old self would be so pissed at me right now. I was supposed to be married to a boy(!) with kids, working as a rich and successful detective (slight obsession with 'Murder She Wrote') proficient in Kung Fu (another slight obsession with Bruce Lee movies) AND commuting to and from work on a hover board.

But alas I was none of those things. As I poured myself another vodka I pondered the thought… Was I a poster child for failing spectacularly? Orrrr have I just failed my way into being… AWESOME!

The way I see it now, the failures in life are just experiences you have to learn from. They equip you to be better, sharper and more resourceful. You become an expert in sniffing out the bullshit and making more real informed choices about what it is you wanna be doing with your life. Failures also make for amazing stories!

Nothing is really learned or appreciated from success without the struggle. I don’t think so anyways. Who wants instant gratification... happiness... and glory anyways?!!

You learn from the mistakes you make even if that mistake has broken you and every fairy-tale you figured you were owed. Just embrace the fact that failing is a lifelong bolt-on that you can’t avoid. BUT that is also ok. If you do find yourself stumbling, then wallow just for a moment… brush that shit off, adjust and crack on.

Failure just serves as a friendly reminder to start again with a little more intelligence this time. You're only an idiot if you keep making the same mistakes whilst learning absolutely nothing. So, quit berating yourself over the fact that your life isn’t where you expected it to be right now… you haven’t failed. Your ultimate success is just pending!