Recently I blogged about J.K Rowling’s Harvard speech where he talks about how she failed before succeeding. As a consequence of that I was directed to this easy recipe for how to deal with failure. I’m not sure I could have said it better so am happy to give you these ten tips for overcoming failure.

Everyone hates to fail but what most people don’t realize is that failing is part of success. Anyone who has ever succeeded has failed many times. So, how do you overcome failure?

1. Learn from your mistakes and failures.

How did you learn to ride a bike? The short answer: you fell off 100 times. Every time you make a mistake or fail, learn as much as you can from it so that you are better prepared next time.

Action Step: Write down the top five things that you learned from your last mistake or failure.

2. Don’t dwell on it.

Now that you have learned something from your mistake, move on. Don’t dwell on your past. You can’t tell where you are going if you are looking backwards. Also, dwelling on your past failures will keep you in prison right where you are.

Action Step: Write down the top 5 things you want to try in the future.

3. Don’t be afraid to try again.

Don’t let the fear from your last failure stop you from reaching your greatness, goal, dream, or potential. Just like learning to ride that bike, you didn’t fall once or twice and then give up.

Action Step: Take what you have learned and try it again now that you are better prepared.

4. Think about worse case scenarios.

If you don’t succeed, what will the outcome be? Is it something so terrible or is it something manageable? Often when we look at things in this perspective we realize it’s not as bad as we think and this alone helps mitigate some of the fear.

Action Step: Write out the absolutely worst case scenario your imagination can come up with.  Ask yourself, can I handle this if it happens? If yes, move forward with it.

5. Take baby steps.

If your fear is extreme or truly preventing you from moving forward or making those much needed changes in your life, don’t jump in full force, take it a bit slower and get your feet wet a little bit at a time. This sometimes eases you into an opportunity; depending on the situation this may not be possible, but if it is, it can help ease the transition.

Action Step: Write out all of the small steps it will take for you to achieve your next goal.

6. Tell yourself “I can do this!” (and believe it.)

Yes, you may have failed at something in the past, but that doesn’t mean you will fail again. Even if it’s an attempt at something you’ve never tried, keep in mind the old adage “nothing ventured, nothing gained”. If you fail you can say at least you took that chance; if you never even tried, you lose, but it’s worse than failing because you’ll never have made the attempt. Keep positive and give it your best shot, because reaching a level of confidence is a definitive measure of success.

Action Step: Go to a mirror right now and say out loud, “I can do anything I put my mind to. I can do it, I can do it, IF I put my mind to it.”

7. Surround yourself with positive people.

No matter what it is that you are trying to achieve, surround yourself with successful people that have done what you want to do. One of the best ways to overcome failure is to learn how other people just like you overcame failure. This will not only encourage you but give you the proof that it can be done.

Action Step: Find a person or a group of people who are successful and get around them as soon as possible.

8. Talk to others (or read).

Reach out and communicate with others who have dealt with the same issue you feel you’ve failed at. See what made them succeed and if they have any tips. If anything, they’ll likely be able to offer some moral support so when the going gets tough, you have some words of wisdom to fall back on. If you don’t know anyone to talk to, get a book on the topic and learn from someone who has been there and done that.

Action Step: Make a list of all of the people you can talk with and all of the books you can learn from.

9. Realise that failure is part of the learning curve.

Failure and mistakes aren’t fun but they are what help us learn to be great at whatever it is we are trying to achieve. “There are no secrets to success. It is the result of preparation, hard work, and learning from failure.” – Colin Powell

Action Step: Think back to a time where you succeeded. Then think how many times you failed or made mistakes to get to that success.

10. Mobilise your fear.

Take your fears and make them work for you. Use them as the driving force to conquer your hesitations by allowing them in to inspire and motivate you rather than languish within you.

Overcoming fear is one of the biggest obstacles people have with change. Change is intimidating, but much good can come from change, but you’ll never know unless you try.

By not letting fear run the show, you can ultimately discover your fears are conquered and you’ll have more confidence when the next big decision or change arrives.

Now that you have the Top 10 Tips for Overcoming Failure, go out there and just do it! You have a seed of greatness on the inside of you. Don’t let anyone or anything stop you from reaching your full potential in life.

Source: http://www.helium.com/items/997735-ten-ways-to-overcome-the-fear-of-failure