You Were Not Created to Fail

You were NOT created to FAIL.

I recently had a life changing experience. I had lateral ligament ankle surgery. I suffered so many ankle sprains I had stretched my ligaments beyond repair. I have been spraining my ankle once every other year since I was 12-years-old. I am an active person. I am a runner, a hiker, a dancer...it really took a toll on me and it was incredibly tough to make the decision to go through with surgery. Also, because I was afraid of losing my job. A job I didn't like but paid me a decent salary.

Ankle surgery turned out to be my blessing in disguise. I collected disability for a few months and finally made the decision that I didn't want to return to that miserable job. Don't get me wrong, I am very thankful for the experience. I learned a lot during my time there and bonded with a group of amazing people who became my family away from home. It was a life experience and although I was not happy there all the time, I realize it was intended for me to be there to learn and appreciate where I am intended to go.

Often times we are in situations where we are taken for granted, unappreciated, and under valued. All of these were this position. To top it off, I had two very demanding bosses who are the owners of the company and have some of the most ridiculous and often unethical requests. It wasn't your normal place of employment where things were done in a process or your time off was respected. There wasn't even a Human Resources department! I have so many stories that would floor anyone who has ever worked in any type of "corporate" environment. As crazy as the job was, there were days when it also had its good moments.

Still, I knew I didn't belong there and I was trying to find the courage to leave for a long time. Too long. It was like a bad relationship! There were days I found myself in tears and even had to start seeing a therapist! Finally, after I was told I needed ankle surgery, I secretly plotted to take my time to recuperate and leave. It was the first chance I had to escape.

When I finally had some much needed head space away from that routine, I convinced myself I would not return. No matter what, I would finally have the guts to stay gone and follow my dreams and the real reason I was here. I decided I would quit on my birthday which would be exactly five months after surgery. I had all that time to figure out my plan to move forward and I did. I was going to be a creative full time. I was going to use everything in my power to live the life I wanted and set my full intention to follow that course.

This brings me back to the first line...you are not created to fail. Life is too short to be somewhere you're unhappy. We are put on this earth to follow our hearts, to dream, to love, to find and do the things to that bring out the best in us. That is our contribution and that is how we help others while we're here.

We are only able to give our best when we apply ourselves. Doing what we love doesn't exactly make things easy but it does make things more enjoyable for us while we are on this journey. It also gives others who are waiting for their courage to do the same.

The acronym for FAIL is (F)irst (A)ttempt (I)n (L)earning. It is likely we are going to fail a few times in life. If you're a risk-taker or someone who aspires to be great, you will probably fail a lot. Failure is the mother of success. It just keeps making life interesting. We are ultimately challenged to become better. We learn to strategize; to devise a plan that works for us because when we finally figure out that breakthrough formula, it is one of the greatest moments of achievement that one could ever feel. It is completely satisfying, as our work should be.

It is definitely okay to fail so you can reap the benefits of knowing what it's like to succeed. It is not okay to give up and stop trying. If we aren't challenged, we can't really enjoy the satisfaction of what it takes to win. To be successful requires hard work that many people are not willing to put in. It takes a lot of practice, long hours, early mornings, late nights, and sacrifice. It takes putting yourself out there relentlessly despite the rejection. Sometimes the opportunities will come to us but we can't depend on it! Other times, you will have to take matters into your own hands and create your own service or company.

You have everything it takes to make it at doing what you want to do. It all stems from your belief in yourself. It all starts with one dream. No matter how far you feel from what you want to be doing or how difficult it may seem to continue, speak your desires into existence as if you're already achieving them.

You are not intended to fail but if you do, dust yourself off and try again. Be determined to continue no matter what the challenges and remember that even a "No" could mean "Not right now." It could set you up for something even better and it could also make for a really good story later on.

I'll leave you with one of my favorite quotes from Winston Churchill:

"Success consists of going from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm."

You can do this! And chances are if you believe you can, you WILL!