Mistakes. Failure. These are common words today in our vocabulary. What do they truly mean and what do either one of them have to do with success?

The answer can be found in the following quote by Nelson Boswell:

“The difference between greatness and mediocrity is often how an individual views a mistake.”

To often people look at individual situations and then label them as failures. When something happens in your life and you feel as a failure, remember to keep an eye on the bigger picture. In other words, focus in on your ultimate goal. When we do this, it will lead to perseverance, and perseverance will lead to longevity. Longevity is the key that creates opportunities for success.

So our question is how should we look at failure? Well we can look at failure by looking at what failure is not.

Failure is not avoidable. We’re human, so we will make mistakes. Below is a list I came across called Rules for Being Human:

  1. You will learn lessons.
  2. There are no mistakes, only lessons
  3. A lesson is repeated until it is learned.
  4. If you don’t learn the easy lessons, they get harder
  5. You’ll know you’ve learned a lesson when your actions change.

Failure is not objective. When a mistake is made, you are the only person who can really label what you do as a failure. How you perceive and respond to mistakes actually determines whether your actions are failures. One interesting statistic is that entrepreneurs almost never get their first business off the ground. In fact, it takes about 3 failures before they finally make it in business. Entrepreneurs perceive mistakes as temporary setbacks. Once you realize that, you will overcome the average and become a world class achiever.

Failure is not your enemy. As a kid, it did everything I could to avoid making a fool of myself. I was so afraid of sticking my neck out because I was so focused on ‘what if I failed or made a mistake’. These types of reasoning stopped me from experiencing events that I could have learned from and grow. I never understood that it takes adversity to succeed at anything in life. Herbert V. Brocknow said “The fellow who never makes a mistake takes his orders from one who does.” If you look at any high achiever, you will learn that they don’t view mistakes as the enemy. Rather they view failure as opportunities to excel.

So, the next time you hear of the word mistake or failure learn to perceive it differently that will cause you to persevere. Remember that mistakes only become failures when you continually respond to them incorrectly. You must realize that failure is the price you must pay to achieve any level of success. It’s a choice we all must make to move forward.