Can Anything Good Come of Failure?

I don’t know about you, but I don’t like failure.

I don’t like to fail and I don’t like watching other people fail.

But in conversation lately, I’ve been thinking about the good that can come from failure.

It just depends on how you look at it.

Definitions are always helpful.

Failure:

Disaster or turning point?

What if you looked at failure as a turning point?

Rather than throwing yourself on the floor and bewailing the failure, what if you acknowledged the disappointment, accepted the loss, and chose to see the moment as an opportunity to start afresh, learn something and/or try again in a different way?

Thomas Edison famously said,

“I have not failed 10,000 times. In fact, I have not failed once. I have succeeded in proving that those 10,000 ways will not work. When I have eliminated the ways that will not work, I will find the way that will work.”

He doggedly persisted in trying to invent the incandescent light bulb and one day succeeded.

Rather than torturing himself at what he had not accomplished, Edison turned the idea on its head and focused on finding a different way to achieve his goal.

Confidence in God?

As a Christian, I believe God has ordained the years of my life and the life path for me to follow that will bring Him the most glory.

Sometimes people fail me. Sometimes I fail to live up to my own expectations.

I may disappoint God, I may sin (defined as “miss the mark”), but I always have the opportunity to confess that sin, be forgiven and start over again.

God’s mercies are new every morning.

Ramifications of my failures may turn up the next morning as well, but I have a choice as to how I will react.

Will I allow the failures and disappointments to define me, or will I see them as opportunities to change?

How do you know this is bad?

Several different friends  recently were turned down from a life change they were excited about making. They had prayed. They were willing to sacrifice their lives and work hard for God.

The powers that be told them “Not yet. We’ll give you a certain amount of time to get your affairs in order, and then you can come back and ask us again.”

They were crushed.

I was disappointed with them, but also gratified for both groups.

There were problems. Not crucial yet, but easier to handle if they were dealt with before either parties launched out onto their sacrifice to God.

When the opportunity arises again they’ll be healthier and in better financial shape. The powers making the decisions were not being cruel, they were ensuring these well-meaning folks would be better situated to succeed.

All three friends felt like failures for having their lack-of-self-control result in their applications being dismissed.

But by focusing on what needs to be repaired, they will be stronger when the right time comes.

Expect failures, but don’t fear them.

A naval officer friend used to tell his men not to hide failure from him. Since failure inevitably would come to light, didn’t it make more sense to deal with it before it became a larger issue?

Before lives were on the line?

One of my parenting books advised us to look for opportunities for our children to fail when they were young and to let them fail.

“Let them fail when the cost is less expensive,” was the admonition.

Our task was to help them recognize the failure, brainstorm ways to overcome the problem and encourage them to try again.

Failure is inevitable in their lives. They needed to learn how to pick themselves up, brush themselves off and start all over again.

(We could help, but not save).

A child who is afraid to fail becomes timid.

Silicon Valley and failure

Some high-tech companies in California’s Silicon Valley famously allow their knowledge workers opportunities to try hard things without fear of penalty.

For a time Google allowed some workers to spend up to 20% of their time tinkering on possible inventions.

Some ideas flopped, some succeeded–like Gmail.

These companies recognized their employees could never come up with new innovations unless they were given an opportunity to try.

Fear of failure can paralyze.

Feeling like a failure can send you off in the wrong direction.

Ultimately, success lies in how you deal with failure.

Without accepting the possibility of failure, some of our greatest inventions never would have occurred.

Is a light bulb going off in your mind right now?

Tweetables

Failure or a new opportunity? Click to Tweet

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What if you looked at failure as a turning point instead of a loss? Click to Tweet