Posted

Sooner or later it’s something we all must deal with – failure.  How we respond to it and how we learn from it can make a significant difference on the path our career takes.

How should we approach failure?  How should we think about it?  Here are a few thoughts on thinking about something we’d rather not think about.

One thing to consider after a failure was your passion for the task.  How enthusiastic were you about it?  How deep was your interest and motivation to the task?  Often our desire to succeed is driven by forces outside of us – approval from others, the desire for money or recognition.  There may be little intrinsic motivation involved, and that may have something to do with the fact that the effort failed.  You simply may not have cared enough about what you were doing.  And without that intrinsic drive, it is harder to make a success out of what you are doing.  So you need to ask yourself, was what you were doing a calling that came from within, or from something external?

Another thing to look at is your expectations about the project or task at hand.  Have you raised them too high in relation to your skills and experience?  No one expects a neophyte to perform like a seasoned pro.  So you need to consider whether you have asked too much of yourself.  Did you achieve all that you could given the circumstances and your capabilities?  And should you be more satisfied with your performance?  In other words, are you being too hard on yourself?

You need to challenge yourself, but you also need to set realistic expectations about what can be accomplished.

Another question to ask yourself is whether you did everything you could to make your efforts successful.  It’s a question only you can answer – did you give it everything you had?  Did you try all avenues possible to reach your goal?  If not, why not?  Did you have the right attitude, or were you not completely confident of success from the start?

Finally, you need to be willing to learn from your failure. If you could do it all over again, what would you do differently or the same?  Would you just change a few things or do a major overhaul?  The idea here is to learn from failure, and not repeat it.

If your career hasn’t taken the turns you would have liked and you’ve decided that needs to change today, contact Winston Resources. We can help you find a new position and/or career with one of Manhattan’s top companies. Contact us today!


Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *