Are You A Failure?

Ever since I was a teenager, I have wanted to play the guitar. My husband got me one for Christmas two years ago and my goal was to teach myself how to play. After collecting dust all this time, I decided to go to Plan B and signed up for in-person guitar lessons.

My very young instructor asked what my vision was :) I smiled and responded that while one day I'd like to play like James Taylor, for now I'd be happy to learn Jingle Bells by Christmas.

Knowing how to read music from having played piano earlier in life, I never thought this would seem so foreign to me! Yet I am finding it very challenging to have my left hand try to find the correct fret, at the same time my right hand tries to find the right string! The fear of failure has triggered the thought of "maybe this isn't for me" in my mind numerous times!!

It is interesting that we fear failure as adults. As a baby learns to walk, it keeps falling down, but we do not regard it as failure. Why don't we give ourselves the same acceptance as we go through life continuously doing things we have not done before?

Failure is natural and necessary. As Richard Branson says, “Do not be embarrassed by your failures, learn from them and start again.”

So I continue to play Jingle Bells over and over and over again. I am learning to accept that playing the wrong string on one verse helps me the next time I play that verse. And I also recognize now that James Taylor has practiced many more hours than me :):)

This Week's Focus:

This week when you attempt something you have never done before, accept there will be failures as part of your road to success ... they are natural and necessary.