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Don't get too easily discouraged
Monday, 23 April 2007
Occasionally, you may come across someone who appears as if they were born an expert in something. Perhaps it's sport, meeting people, business or family. Some of us just seem to be stars, while others are common.
There's no doubt that natural ability plays a role in determining life's winners and losers. And most of us also acknowledge that work plays a part. The more effort you put into something, the better you'll become at it.
But there's a third factor that's equally important, I believe. That's the ability to overcome discouragement.
Let's face it, in almost any arena we choose to play, the first few times we're going to suck. To imagine you can try out something unfamiliar and not spend time falling flat on your face is simply unrealistic. Sure, it would be great if we could be the best straight away, but that's not going to happen.
This is often what separates life's winners from life's losers. If you can wear early discouragement, and continue on despite it. Being able to push past those feelings of low self-worth, doubt and fear is a skill in itself. If you can train yourself in it, you'll do much better in life.
People who appear more resourceful than others often have this ability in spades. When others run away with their tail between their legs, such people stand their ground. They're willing to accept that the odd humiliating failure is just part of dealing with the world.
Realising that this is the case can, in fact, be a great cure for discouragement. If you feel yourself sinking into self-doubt, simply remind yourself that it's all part of the process of becoming successful. The more humiliating failures you have to your name, the further you likely are along the road to success. I'm not suggesting you should deliberately set out to fail, just realise that it's an inevitable bend in the road towards what you want.
Put effort into developing the skill of not getting too easily discouraged. It's difficult to do, but definitely worth it.
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