FAILURE…. NO, NO, NO! AN OPPORTUNITY TO GROW!
Failure- We often run from it, hide from it, deny it and certainly don’t embrace it. I sometimes feel alone in the land of failure as if nobody else experiences similar feelings. WRONG! We have that sensation. I am working to embrace that feeling more and more and constantly remind myself to meet my fear with love.
A dear friend from Picky Bar helped to create a social media photo contest! My hope was to get people pumped up about the retreat I am having in June and offer one free slot to the person who posted the most creative photo. Wow! I thought and hoped this was going to really draw peoples attention and increase their enthusiasm. Again, WRONG!
Two consecutive nights in a row I had this brilliant dream that all sorts of people were submitting their photos and wanted to be a part of the retreat- only to wake up an find that it was a dream. My cousin who lives in San Francisco and friend who live in Seattle kindly posted photos using #pickybarsthrive. Neither, regardless of if they won, would be in attendance.
Self worth is an amazing thing. I had paired my sense of self worth with how many people expressed interest in this retreat based on social media photos submissions?! I really, truly, fully believe that the retreat is going to be a vibrant, fun, fulfilling, belly laughing, lungs burning, goal setting event! Why then does it matter how many people engage in this social media contest? Why does that measure the relevancy of the event? Why would that give it credibility?
We live in a culture that is saturated with outside stimuli. Why was my dream that the photo contest a success so captivating and a sense of disappoint overcome me when it wasn’t reality? How do we ensure that we are aiming to our true? We are living a life we are proud of and excited by regardless of the social media response. This journey of life is ours! It is for us to own. The only thing that matters is that we are connected to our passion and living each day surrounded by love, connection and doing what makes us tick. It is so easy to lose sight of this and feel that pressure and “hustle.” When we believe in ourselves and our mission- we are creating the life we want to live. Our intentions guide us to our desired place in the world, regardless of the number of followers, likes or interactions with those via social media :)
Never shy away from taking chances and risks. Regardless of the outcome they are not failures, they are opportunities to grow. Some risks or "failures" may turn out to be a huge success! In the wise words of J.K. Rowling; "It is impossible to live without failing at something, unless you live so cautiously that you might as well not have lived at all. In which case, you've failed by default." Cheers to failing, learning from it and continuing to put ourselves in the position to fail! Choose to venture into that sweet spot where vulnerability meets your wildest dreams!