Failure. A word with a negative connotation, oftentimes implying that one has lost or was not enough. A word that is regularly correlated with deep shame, embarrassment, and tears. The funny thing is I’ve never heard of someone reaching a milestone without failing on their way to reach the achievement. There seems to be almost an expectation that you will hit a homerun on the first swing… an expectation that you will never strike out or miss a swing. I hate to break it to you, but the truth is you will miss, many times, though you should.

The Building Blocks to Success
I am a firm believer that failing is the first building block to success. When you try something and it doesn’t work out the way you wanted or expected it to, it tells you whether or not your hypothesis was right or wrong. Failing teaches you that the approach you took only worked up to a certain point. Failing forces you to look at a solution differently. Using all of these viewpoints helps propel you to the next step on the ladder, which will eventually bring you success. You’ll never get from A to Z in one jump. Sometimes you’ll land on H, and sometimes you’ll land on O, and sometimes you’ll land so close to W and not quite make it. Instead of sitting and sulking, celebrate how far you’ve come and where you’re currently standing.

Frustration
Failing can be really frustrating. There’s no question about it. I think it’s okay to feel frustration. Allow yourself to be human and feel frustration. Often, this can be used as fuel. The idea that you know you can reach the end goal. The idea that you know you should have been able to make it work. The idea that you should have been able to figure it out. Whatever that feeling is, lean into it and turn it into motivation, because the reality is: you can do it. Don’t let any other thoughts creep into your head. Those will only distract you from the mission.

Science Fairs
Think about when we were kids and we all had that giant dreaded science fair project. If you remember, we all had to come up with a project, or maybe you were assigned one. Then, we created a hypothesis, and we tested that hypothesis three to five times and reported on it. Some of us found the answer we were looking for, and some of us discovered that we were looking at the project all wrong the whole time. Either way, after a certain amount of time, we all gave presentations of our experience during the project, successes and failures encountered. At the conclusion, we had our completed projects.

Life is like one giant science fair, and each new goal you make is just a science project. Of course, there is much more on the line, like paying your bills or getting the next career move or finding the perfect girl/guy. No doubt about it, the stakes are higher. But by the same token, doesn’t that make the learning process just that much more important? If you never take the time to challenge yourself and learn from each baby step along the way, you’ll struggle to reach the success you’re looking for. If you never make yourself uncomfortable now, you’re going to be wildly uncomfortable and stressed when life forces you to get uncomfortable. And most importantly, if you never challenge yourself and push yourself because you’re afraid of failing, every challenge that life throws at you is going to seem monstruous, and the reality is – it probably isn’t. Read more  oursocalled20s.com

Fail Forward Proudly
Life isn’t easy. Especially our 20s! Don’t make the future harder for yourself because you’re afraid of someone seeing you scrape your knees now. Sh*t happens. People misstep and trip-up. I’ve yet to meet someone who hasn’t, so take the opportunities to grow and learn and push yourself that much closer to achieving the things you once thought you couldn’t. It’s far better to have the option to say “no” to something in life because you know you can do it and realize it’s not a challenge for you anymore than to say “no” to something because you know you’re ill-equipped for what life is about to throw at you.

Failing forward, as I like to call it, only gets you closer to your highest potential and your final goal. At the end of the day, you should do this for you, so who cares if someone sees you trip? It isn’t their show to watch anyways. And I bet once you get to the top, no one will count the amount of misses you encountered along the way. I know whoever you’re comparing yourself to in your head – you’ve only counted their wins, not their misses. That should tell you something.