Never Be Afraid to Fail!
The old saying and Kelly Clarkson song goes “What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.” This past week, I had my last cheerleading tryout ever. After the tryouts were over, we all had to line up in our cars and wait for the results. The anticipation was so stressful, especially for the incoming seniors like myself who knew this was our last year. Finally, the sponsors came outside and as we drove by, they handed us an envelope with the list of names of the girls who had made the team. When I opened the envelope, I saw my name and was so excited, but then I saw that three of my closest friends had not made the team this year. I was devastated, as were all of the other seniors who made the team. It was even more heartbreaking for our dear friends and their moms. It was such a bittersweet moment. We were all happy for ourselves, but so disappointed for our friends and former teammates. We couldn’t imagine cheering our senior year without them.
As hard as it is to accept there are actually many benefits that come from failure and disappointment. I am sure that each of us can look back on some of our less successful moments and see how they made us stronger. Here are some of the many things we can learn from our own failures.
Responsibility – we have to be accountable for our own actions – successes and failures. Failures will cause us to have to deal with discomfort but it can also be a great motivator.
Coping Skills – When things don’t go our way it is only natural to feel sadness, anger, frustration, etc. These feelings are part of life, and we all have to learn to live with them. Experiencing failures will help us to develop important coping skills, which we will need time and time again in life.
Learn to Adapt – Life doesn’t always go as planned. In order to live a full life, we all need to learn how to change and adapt when things don’t go as we hoped. Making mistakes allows us to roll with the punches and adapt to the unexpected.
Learn Not to Fear Failure – If we think that the only thing that matters is not making mistakes or not succeeding we will be afraid to fail and may not try new things. It is people who have failed repeatedly who have changed the world and discovered new and better ways of doing things.
Life is full of disappointments and there is no chance we will get through life without experiencing some of them. As hard as it is to accept, I truly believe that everything happens for a reason. Once you get through a disappointment, make sure you learn from it and let it make you stronger!
“Nothing is impossible, the word itself says ‘I’m Possible.” – Audrey Hepburn
Jules Fletcher
Miss Teen International 2015
Responsibility – we have to be accountable for our own actions – successes and failures. Failures will cause us to have to deal with discomfort but it can also be a great motivator.
Coping Skills – When things don’t go our way it is only natural to feel sadness, anger, frustration, etc. These feelings are part of life, and we all have to learn to live with them. Experiencing failures will help us to develop important coping skills, which we will need time and time again in life.
Learn to Adapt – Life doesn’t always go as planned. In order to live a full life, we all need to learn how to change and adapt when things don’t go as we hoped. Making mistakes allows us to roll with the punches and adapt to the unexpected.
Learn Not to Fear Failure – If we think that the only thing that matters is not making mistakes or not succeeding we will be afraid to fail and may not try new things. It is people who have failed repeatedly who have changed the world and discovered new and better ways of doing things.
“Nothing is impossible, the word itself says ‘I’m Possible.” – Audrey Hepburn
Jules Fletcher
Miss Teen International 2015
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