5 things I Learned from Failure

Wednesday, April 8, 2015


I don’t enjoy failure but there is something worse than that which is learning absolutely nothing from the experience. Here are 5 things I learned from one of my recent failures. 

1. Watch the Leader and only Move when they do. I remember some of my first marathon training runs. It was dark and I ran in front of our leader. He knew where we were going and I didn’t. There is nothing more frustrating than running in front of the person with the map. I didn’t know where to go and I could easily get lost. I learned that I always, ALWAYS follow the leader. I have experienced the same thing in different organizations. Some of my frustration came from running in front of the person with the plan. I can still perform well while getting directions from the leader. What a great way to practice humility and submission.

2. I will always have a spirit of excellence. There are variables I can’t control but there are many that I can. Having a spirit of excellence is totally in my control. For example, I will always have my paperwork up to date and organized. My personal presentation will be outstanding and my personal appearance superb. My attitude will be of a servant. I can totally control these variables and I am willing to do this for the good of the organization. 

3. I will always be myself - God gave me my personality for a good reason so I will display the joy of the Lord as I speak to people in (and out of) the organization. The greatest value I bring to the organization is the unique person God created me to be so I will be totally that as I serve. 

4. I will be Present - I commit to look people in the eye and listen attentively when they speak to me. People will always leave my presence feeling better than when they first came in. I believe that I need to uplift people because of the God I serve. If I am to give what I have, I intend to give the peace of God and the joy of the Lord as well as the encouragement of the Holy Spirit. 

5. I will have a professional attitude - I will be ready to perform as expected. I will stick with my time limits while giving my best to fulfill the task given by my leader. I will be a problem solver and I will have a can do attitude. No one needs more complainers so I can be the solution. 

Friends, this is what I do after I have my pity party: try to learn something and improve. I heard someone say that the fact that you’re failing is proof that you are trying. I pray that I can always make progress and make new mistakes. 

• How do you learn from failure?