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Tips for Dealing With Low Confidence Following Multiple Failures
In Jonah Lehrer's book, IMAGINE, he says, "Every creative journey begins with a problem. It starts with a feeling of frustration... the act of being stumped." It is often at this point when we might be tempted to give up, yet research shows that it is often at this point where we have what scientists call the "insight experience."
Consider this: Failure prepares the way to your success because it's just at the point when you are ready to give up that you release the pent up energy of all your striving and stretching. You've worked hard, stayed faithful to your dream, kept your hopes alive and now you can no longer hold on without any signs of encouragement, and you let go. Now all that energy turns into momentum as unseen energy reserves and hidden resources appear and propel you to the success you seek.
What is this thing called 'failure?' Let's strip away its cloak of illusion, like the Wizard of Oz, which turns out to be nothing more than a small insignificant figure with a loud, scary voice:
Failure is a feeling of frustration and disappointment which often leads to hopelessness and the desire to give up. That's it - it's just a feeling, yet in reality, it is a necessary and natural part of success. When you most want to give up, when you feel that let down of hope and a loss of energy when things don't go your way, or when someone doesn't give you positive feedback you expected, or things don't happen according to your time frame or expectations, that is when failure can hit you hard in the gut, or the throat, or both, making you feel the disappointment of defeat. Failure is a feeling, and also a misguided idea that something must not be working so your initial enthusiasm to pursue a course of action is replaced by the desire to stop, and everything cranks to a miserable halt.
Webster's online dictionary calls failure "giving way under stress." Teach yourself to keep going, not to give in to stress, and to transcend the dismal thoughts of quitting. Use these moments as preparation for the 'insight experience' percolating just beneath the surface, ready to rise like bubbles of clarity and perception into your awareness. Take a hot bath, walk in nature, get your mind completely off judging or evaluating yourself as having failed. Stay true to your dream and keep your self-esteem high by reminding yourself you have everything it takes to succeed. When you feel refreshed enough to return to your dream building, trust that you will be ready for a bright new look and a glimpse into a perspective you hadn't previously considered.
Don't be fooled by the appearance of failure, it is just preparing you in the form of greater skill development you need to express your gifts to the world. You will feel the most fulfilled when you master skills you didn't previously have and can share them with others.
It looks bleakest just before success appears, like the darkness preceding the dawn. The pressure from the expectation of others can be especially difficult to overcome when you are struggling to make that winning shot, or make the right career move, or make any of the decisions so important in sending your life forward to a higher level of expertise and significant achievement. Read biographies and books by successful people and you will find a common theme: They each had a journey through the preparation of failure to reach success. Michael Jordan said he was trusted to take the game winning shot and missed twenty-six times. He says he has failed many times in his life and believes that is why he succeeds.
See failure for what it really is: Rich soil which has been prepared for something artistic, a stepping stone to something even more wonderful than you imagined. Your own personal creation can be of a life filled with your greatest dreams. It can happen if you keep moving past the stumped or confused stage. Feel the conviction that your ideas have merit, that you deserve to triumph and win. Your self-confidence will soar as you become a magnet of attraction for all that you dream about. Invite fresh ideas and new information, then follow the threads as they appear, one step at a time - all the way to the finish line
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/7329340
Consider this: Failure prepares the way to your success because it's just at the point when you are ready to give up that you release the pent up energy of all your striving and stretching. You've worked hard, stayed faithful to your dream, kept your hopes alive and now you can no longer hold on without any signs of encouragement, and you let go. Now all that energy turns into momentum as unseen energy reserves and hidden resources appear and propel you to the success you seek.
What is this thing called 'failure?' Let's strip away its cloak of illusion, like the Wizard of Oz, which turns out to be nothing more than a small insignificant figure with a loud, scary voice:
Failure is a feeling of frustration and disappointment which often leads to hopelessness and the desire to give up. That's it - it's just a feeling, yet in reality, it is a necessary and natural part of success. When you most want to give up, when you feel that let down of hope and a loss of energy when things don't go your way, or when someone doesn't give you positive feedback you expected, or things don't happen according to your time frame or expectations, that is when failure can hit you hard in the gut, or the throat, or both, making you feel the disappointment of defeat. Failure is a feeling, and also a misguided idea that something must not be working so your initial enthusiasm to pursue a course of action is replaced by the desire to stop, and everything cranks to a miserable halt.
Webster's online dictionary calls failure "giving way under stress." Teach yourself to keep going, not to give in to stress, and to transcend the dismal thoughts of quitting. Use these moments as preparation for the 'insight experience' percolating just beneath the surface, ready to rise like bubbles of clarity and perception into your awareness. Take a hot bath, walk in nature, get your mind completely off judging or evaluating yourself as having failed. Stay true to your dream and keep your self-esteem high by reminding yourself you have everything it takes to succeed. When you feel refreshed enough to return to your dream building, trust that you will be ready for a bright new look and a glimpse into a perspective you hadn't previously considered.
Don't be fooled by the appearance of failure, it is just preparing you in the form of greater skill development you need to express your gifts to the world. You will feel the most fulfilled when you master skills you didn't previously have and can share them with others.
It looks bleakest just before success appears, like the darkness preceding the dawn. The pressure from the expectation of others can be especially difficult to overcome when you are struggling to make that winning shot, or make the right career move, or make any of the decisions so important in sending your life forward to a higher level of expertise and significant achievement. Read biographies and books by successful people and you will find a common theme: They each had a journey through the preparation of failure to reach success. Michael Jordan said he was trusted to take the game winning shot and missed twenty-six times. He says he has failed many times in his life and believes that is why he succeeds.
See failure for what it really is: Rich soil which has been prepared for something artistic, a stepping stone to something even more wonderful than you imagined. Your own personal creation can be of a life filled with your greatest dreams. It can happen if you keep moving past the stumped or confused stage. Feel the conviction that your ideas have merit, that you deserve to triumph and win. Your self-confidence will soar as you become a magnet of attraction for all that you dream about. Invite fresh ideas and new information, then follow the threads as they appear, one step at a time - all the way to the finish line
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/7329340
