The most frequent question I get from people I speak with is this:
What’s the secret to success?
Now, baked into this question are a lot of unspoken insecurities that I hear, some of which include:
“I’m not successful.”
“I don’t have enough money.”
“People don’t think highly enough of me.”
“I don’t add value.”
“People probably don’t want to listen to me.”
“I feel judged.”
“I’m inadequate.”
In essence, it boils down to…
I’M. NOT. GOOD. ENOUGH.
In my coaching practice, I delve into the inner critic that can sometimes relentlessly narrate our lives. It’s this voice that often stifles progress more than we care to admit. The primary obstacle obstructing your path to success? None other than yourself. Yes, YOU.
So, back to the million-dollar question about success.
Here’s the answer:
Success is based on a pile of failures.
The key lies in embracing this thought. Unless you’re willing to venture beyond your comfort zone, embrace uncertainty, and adopt a mindset of perpetual learning, you’ll forever feel adrift from the life you envision—both personally and professionally. What this means is that you will, at some point, be a beginner. You will, at some point, make a mistake*. You will, at some point, fail.
How you respond to failure makes all the difference. You can either magnify its significance, by adding meaning and stories to it, giving it weight it never deserved, or, you can take it in, learn from it, and press on.
You get to choose.
*There’s no such thing as mistakes.