It's Okay to Fail

It has been said that if we don’t fail much of the time, then we are playing it too safe in life. I have failed at most things I have tried, particularly the first few times. When we see children learning to walk, we don’t even consider scolding them for falling or not being able to walk with steadiness. It is simply that they don’t have the strength or dexterity developed to do so yet. They don’t take it personal when they fall, nor do we think it is a shortcoming. Yet, as we develop, we begin to think of missing the target perfectly as a failure or weakness. Many of us do come from performance based family systems and begin to internalize perfectionism, performance and associate it with love. This is a killer of joy and stymies our creative child like nature. We are meant to continue growing and exploring as human beings. If we are afraid of failing and attribute it to some sort of weakness, our life will remain stagnant and complacent. As we begin to fill something emerge in us that we would like to expand into or a new activity to try, then take a small action. Stay light hearted and expect set backs, yet embrace it with child like curiosity. Curiosity keeps us open and flexible to life without shutting us down in perfectionistic rigidity. Our striving is okay, but limited in its ability to stay inspired when a set back occurs. Stay the course with arms wide open to what life is unfolding for us.