“Only those who dare to fail greatly can ever achieve greatly.” -Robert F. Kennedy
I have always had a tough relationship with failure. Early on I knew only that failure was bad, but not that failure was necessary. Many people my age would say that they have a fear of failure. With the job market the way it is, and the increasing standards and expectations, there is a lot of pressure on people to succeed.
Throughout my life I have seen a lot of success along with a lot of failure and it has all played an integral part in making me the person I am today. Each time I failed, I was devastated. I couldn’t see beyond the fact that I wanted so badly to succeed in the situation and it just didn’t happen for me.
I don't want to sit here and spell out all of my failures to you; that would take too long. I'll just say that I have experienced a lot of failure in my short life. At the time I could never see how it was beneficial for me, but looking back I am happy to have those experiences. If I had succeeded in some areas, it would not have pushed me to dream bigger and try harder. My failures have pushed me to keep trying and in a lot of instances, what I achieved post-failure was much greater than what I wanted to achieve in the first place.
I also believe that my failures have shaped me into a stronger person. I don't think that I would be prepared for the life I have now if I hadn’t experienced failures in my life. Every day I face challenges that I might not have been equipped to face without my past experiences. Now, I still face hardships and failures, but I know that I will eventually succeed and I will be better off for having experienced it.
- Bria