Is There a Healthy Way to Deal With Failure?
by/margit cathrine moller

The online edition of Fox News Daily stated something that I thought was disturbing even for me who is not an American citizen. It said, “The most regrettable result of President Barack Obama’s presidency is that he has changed America from a nation obsessed about success to one obsessed about failure.”

This led me to thinking about some people, even clients, who are very obsessed with failures and who seem to have difficulty in dealing with what they perceive to be a lack of accomplishment. I will leave it to the Americans to deal with their government and with their President, but I will look to talk about people who cannot deal with failures.

There are four ways to deal with failure:

1. Ignore it and act as if it is not important.

Some people are in denial that they fail to see the truth. While they continue to enjoy their lives, people around them might reject them or pressure them to do something about their lives. But still, there are people who think accomplishments and success are overrated and they are already contented with what they have.

2. Give Up and Think That the Dream is Not Meant to Be.

Another easy route for people to deal with failures; They try once and when they fail, they will say it is not meant for me. Or, they come up with reasons and excuses in order to stop trying.

3. Try Harder and Work Some More

Yes, there are people who choose not to give up and continue to strive. It is commendable if they do it once or twice, but doing the same thing again and again despite knowing that it will lead to failure is already a sign of not learning from the past.

4. Look at Failures as Learning Experiences

For me, the best way to deal with failures is to treat it as a learning experience.
Then you can pursue your goal but this time bringing with you significant insights that will help you come up with better strategies.