Can Failure Build Courage?

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Although it doesn’t get addressed nearly as often as things like heights, spiders and public speaking, the fear of failure very likely plagues a larger percent of the population than the rest of the listed items. Most people go through their entire lives in a cautious, acceptable manner. They build a safe bubble around their lives, remaining there for the duration.

In addressing the title of the article, can failure build courage, it is important to note that an argument could be made that in order to fail successfully, one must possess courage in the first place. This is a valid point. Although consistent failures can very easily build a stronger sense of courage, having the courage from the start to forbid a few mistakes from derailing your process is a prerequisite.

It is this very issue that prevents most people from ever achieving any extraordinary goals they set for themselves. In order to become skillful at anything you try your hand at, you can bet that there is going to be some mistakes and missteps involved. This fact becomes especially true when striving for monumental achievements. Without the right amount of courage going into step one of the path to success, you are unlikely to ever make it past the first obstacle.

Now that we have discussed the importance of initial courage to progress and succeed where those that lack it cannot, the question of whether or not failure can actually build courage should be further addressed.

The short answer is yes, this can happen. If you are able to muster just enough courage to get over the first failure along the road to big achievement, any failures after that point can solidify your mental fortitude.

However, just because you made it one step further than most does not automatically mean you will emerge victorious and far more courageous at the finish line. The manner in which you process failure is extremely important. You see, failing here and there is perfectly acceptable and is an inevitable price of success.

On the contrary, failing in the exact same way over and over again is very detrimental. Each mistake and shortcoming has to be a learning experience that you use to avoid the same error the next time around. This doesn’t mean that you will always get it right the very next trial, as failing better than before is a real thing. This process is sometimes referred to as “failing forward.”

As far as courage is concerned, the amount of it required to fight back feelings of inferiority and ineptitude and evaluate your mistakes from an objective point of view is significant and each time you can do that, your courage grows.

Another unlikely source of self-courage that people acquire on their path to the top comes from the critics and naysayers. The process repeats itself time and time again: when you go after big things that others are afraid to attempt, this makes them acutely aware of their lack of courage.

Rather than self-evaluate and try to improve their own lives, they usually try to pull you down to their safety zone through discouragement and ridicule. This onslaught continues until right about the finish line, when you secure whatever prize you were seeking. All of the sudden, this negative feedback shifts to showers of praise and the same people that asked you “why” the whole time want to know “how.”

The amount of courage you gain from resisting the criticism and doubt from numerous voices telling you to give up is absolutely enormous, making the finish line that much more fulfilling.