When I was younger I was made to think that failures are bad and should be avoided at all costs. I had one parent telling me that only 100% was acceptable and if i got a grade even 1% less than 100% I was stupid because I made a silly mistake and missed a perfect grade. I would often top my primary school classes and to everyone else, I was brilliant, but i would holler and feel so stupid and inadequate even if I got a 99%. I had people look at me and think "what an ungrateful little brat". They couldnt wrap their minds around the fact that I was displeased with my result, which I couldn't blame them for.
What I grew up with was an extreme fear of failure. I wasnt told that it's okay to fail, to use my mistake as a guide on what not to do. I was and am still hard on myself when I mess up but I have made some progress in that area, I mean, after making so many mistakes and still surviving I definitely would eventually learn that failures are not so bad after all, its not the end. I have learned that I first have to admit to myself that ive failed, then i can go on to discussing why I failed and how I can do differently in the future.
You have to get comfortable with the reality that you've messed up and that it is okay. You have to forgive yourself and move on or you won't grow. From an early age, we should be taught to do our best in everything (Age Quod Agis) and its okay, shake the dust off and try again. I remember when i did my GSAT exam and I passed for the Wolmer's Girls School, I cried my eyes out because i didnt achieve the perfection that i and my parents expected. Wolmer's is a great school but it wasnt Campion College. What i wasnt told was that i could excel anywhere I went and the fact that i did my best was what mattered most.
Now that ive learned it, I'm sharing it with you, it's okay to fail because that's when we learn the best lessons and get motivation for the other tasks ahead. Fail forward .. when you have fallen flat on your face, look at life from a different perspective and get back up, but this time stronger
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