The Value of Failure and Challenging the Fear of It

Failure is like a puzzle, you cannot see the bigger and beautiful picture until every piece is put in place. Puzzles are time-consuming and often leave one in a state of tedium as to where they believe their task of completing the puzzle cannot be done. Failure also can be repetitive and is presented as almost impossible to those who do not try hard enough to know where each piece goes. A puzzle is not truly considered a puzzle until it is complete, and failure is not truly beneficial until one meets success. Failure is a necessity in order to reach success because it allows one to visualize their mistakes, strengthen their mentality, and improve from advice.

Each piece of the puzzle has its sort of significance in which role it plays in the bigger picture of the image. Although a puzzle can be very cumbersome, relating to failure, each circumstantial error allows for one to step back and foresee their flaws. “Six more attempts and six more falls make you perfect” (Twain 3). The more a person fails, the bigger the opportunity there is to examine the problem. Many often feel pathetic when they fail and the idea of giving up is introduced. Although many feel that dropping their task should be their initial reaction, the better option is ultimately envisioning the mistake made, then further improving off of it. Each failure conducted in one’s life is purposed to help them reach their eventual goal. “It is only the last link in a very long chain of turning-points commissioned to produce the cardinal result; it is not any more important than the humblest of its ten thousand predecessors” (Twain 1). Each defeat calls for motivation which can allow one to keep experiencing their failures. The last accomplishment one obtains comes from countless amounts of failure and one doesn’t reach their goal until they learn that it takes failure to learn from mistakes. Some take the experiences and use it to their advantage whereas others use it to find new ways to reach that same goal. “There are those who imagine that the unlucky accidents of life—life's ‘experiences’—are in some way useful to us” (Twain 4). As Twain had the experiences for himself, his failures guided him and shaped him into the famous writer he is today. Without failing in life, the option of success is not presented. Failure is a fundamental in renewing your mentality and improving off of that.

As soon as a piece of a puzzle is placed in its correct spot, one obtains enough information to keep persevering and further create the image that the puzzle is trying to display. Each failure is one closer to the result of success. The mentality required to succeed cannot include fear or apprehension. “One who fears the future, who fears failure, limits his activities” (Ford 1). Minor setbacks will thus lead to a great comeback. One who is not trying because they are simply scared is not going to achieve their goals. A positive and hopeful mindset is the key to success. The hope one can have in accomplishing their goals is required. “It is failure that is easy. Success is always hard. A man can fail in ease, he can succeed only by paying out all he has and is” (Ford 4). The time and devotion put into a prosperous outcome will determine character. The character one has for their failures determines how successful they will be. Avoiding failure does not make a person successful. The continuous effort put into the recovery of each failure is what gives an individual the experience to find the solution of fixing a mistake. One of the most famous authors, J.K. Rowling, had an encounter with failure and how it played out into success. “I was set free because my greatest fear had been realized, and I was still alive, and I still had a daughter whom I adored, and I had an old typewriter and a big idea. And so rock bottom became the solid foundation on which I rebuilt my life” (Rowling 3). As one takes a step to envision their mistake, they develop a character in which it is used to guide them to victory. The value of failure is more than what appears at the surface. Failure gives a person the kinds of experiences that are used to help them succeed in the end. Those who do not take risks or step outside the box are afraid of failure. Those who do not experience might think they do not fail, but instead, they already fail by default because they do not learn or succeed. Failure is inevitable and unavoidable because the one who does not fail simply does not live. J.K. Rowling’s failures simply motivated and guided her to be successful.

As soon as an individual finds a piece to a puzzle, that is one step closer to revealing the image in full. The motivation and time put into the completion of the puzzle leave the final result with more significant content. The difficulty tests one's ingenuity and allows them to think outside of the box. Failure plays a role in lives as a way to test someone to teach them how to avoid failure. Fear of failure can withdraw someone from advancing on further into life. Success is when one improves from the advice taken and information learned from their previous failure, although some believe that not to be the outcome. In the play, A Raisin In The Sun by Lorraine Hansberry, the Younger family often struggles against economic hardship and racial prejudice. With the circumstances they live in, some of the family members often lose hope in foreseeing their dreams as a result of success. “What is there to be pleasant ‘bout” (Hansberry 66). Within the story, Ruth is dissatisfied with life and chooses to share it aloud about how she hates the circumstances she's living in. She is sad and corrupted about the hardships of her life that she finds it hard to be cheerful about anything. The failure that she experiences leaves her hopeless, resulting in a bad character. Her unspirited mindset causes her to believe that a good result would not come clear to her in the future. This approves what some believe about failure and how it sometimes does not have a positive effect. The benefits of failure overrule the risks because it leaves a more significant result. Value and meaning become heightened in the face of difficulty. Facing challenges and enduring a loss compels you to gather up resources and develop skills beyond your arsenal. “While there are habits and skills you haven’t yet acquired, failures remind us of habits and skills we do possess” (Ngyuen 2). Even though the consequence of failure is not always successful, the information and experience gathered can help one use that to obtain new goals in the future.

Nguyen explains that his value of failure comes from hardships and setbacks due to the experiences obtained within those hard times. The endurance and determination given within those moments are the keys to success. Failure is ultimately a learning process and not an emotional turmoil. An experience that may relate to is one intertwined with friendships. As for me, I have had friends that turn their backs and end friendships without notice. Many lose friends within their lifetime, yet as for me the result of losing friends calls for finding new ones. My choice in friends improved because I did not give up and instead I became happy and found new friends. Failure occurs in all lives because no one can avoid failure. Success is not always the outcome, yet growth is. As people grow, they are united with other things such as certain characteristics and hard work that allow one to improve off of their mistakes. Failure is subtle and is commonly acknowledged once a person benefits from it.

Nobody truly is set for failure, in fact, many people circumstantially run into failure on their way to success. Lessons are learned, decisions are made, and improvisions are obtained when dealing with failure. Facing challenges and enduring loss gives you plentiful resources to develop skills beyond thought. Sometimes hitting rock bottom is the foundation needed to build on from there to regain strength. Rebuilding thus creates room for improvement and ultimately success. Through failure, many important aspects of life have been discovered. As it relates to a puzzle piece, each one gives more information to complete the entire puzzle. The image does not have much value unless each piece is correctly placed. The time-consuming project provides enough time to focus on the patterns, build a hopeful mindset, and complete the puzzle to its entirety. Many should take advantage of the skills and knowledge obtained. At length, the goals accomplished are used to influence individuals and those around them. Failure makes up a significant part of their education process because once they fail, they realize what it takes to succeed. It is the underestimated value of trial and error that guides us to success.