If you have ever experienced any failures in your life, then you know that moving past it can sometimes be hard. It can affect your self-esteem, your confidence, and your resilience.
Did you know that your past failure may impact your decisions, even when you are not aware of it?
Failure and the fear of experiencing future setbacks can profoundly influence how you evaluate situations and whether you take risks. Here are some of the ways your past failure may be negatively impacting your decision-making process now.
Living with the Fear of Failure
Fear is a cognitive, behavioral, and emotional reaction to a perceived negative consequence that you anticipate. In the case of the fear of failure, what you are afraid of is not achieving a specific goal that you have set for yourself. When you live with a fear of failure, you are in a constant state of worry, which leads to negative thinking, a reluctance to act or take chances, and avoidance of circumstances or situations that could lead to adverse outcomes.
When you find you back down because you don’t want to agonize over disappointed or of not reaching a goal, you may procrastinate or try to avoid responsibility in your life. It reduces your self-determination and can lead to a decrease in your motivation to accomplish essential goals or to see a project through to its end.
Fear of failure can keep you from realizing your career aspirations or experiencing success in your chosen field. When you are worried about setbacks and obstacles, you are less likely to take risks that could lead to advancement. It could lead to you feeling dissatisfied in your job because you can’t advance to levels that challenge you. It can affect you regardless of your crossroad in life.
Those who live in fear of failure are concerned with how others might perceive them or others’ judgments of their accomplishments. When you make a decision based on others’ thoughts, you fail to honor your priorities and goals. You put yourself last, which can lead to feelings of purposeless, regret, and resentment over time.
Those who fear disappointment and failure also may be jeopardizing their futures. Because you are placing so much priority on success or avoidance of problems, you are no longer able to predict what might happen in the future with much accuracy. It not only makes you feel powerless, but it can also affect your ability to take a proactive approach and make the best decisions for the future. In a sense, worrying about possible outcomes makes you less able to prepare for them.
Constant worry about your past failures, and trying to avoid repeating them makes you less resilient to any obstacle you might encounter in your life, too. Even simple challenges become “warning signs’ or have more meaning than is necessary, leading you to give up easily or to resist trying hard when things are difficult because you fear failure.
Accept Past Failure as Building Blocks for a Better You
Fear of past failure can alter everything you perceive, how you judge others and the world, and all the decisions that you make. When you allow concerns, whether it be of fear of failure, being alone, or anything else, rule your thinking, you become a slave to them rather than in charge of your destiny. You can even feel the physical effects of this worry and stress, including chronic illnesses and conditions that influence your life enjoyment.
While failure may be embarrassing, a blow to your ego, or a sign that you need to change or grow, it is always an opportunity to learn and holds the possibility of future success. It is all in the way that you view it.
