Grant Yourself Some Grace: Tell That Inner Naysayer That It’s Okay to Fail and Make Mistakes

Your inner naysayer can be relentless. It makes you believe you’ll never measure up, and it holds you to impossibly high standards. Grant yourself some grace because the truth is, you’ll never be perfect, and we all have flaws. It’s important to embrace and accept failure if you’re to overcome that inner critic of yours. In order to do that, let’s look at some of the benefits of failure so that you understand it really is okay to fail and to make mistakes.
 
Learn Something New
 
Failure always teaches us a lesson. Even if that lesson is what not to do in the future. You’ll usually gain some valuable personal insight when you make mistakes. You can then take this information and put it to good use in your next attempt. Failure is a good teacher.
 
Overcome Fear
 
Fear can be paralyzing. It’s easy to become stuck in fear and not move forward toward your goals. When you try but fail, you learn that failure isn’t the end of the world. Messing up can actually help you to overcome your fears. Instead of staying stuck, you’ll give it a shot the next time an opportunity presents itself because you’ll know you got past your last attempt just fine.
 
Shift Directions
 
Sometimes failure shows you what you don’t want. It can help you to get your bearings, dust yourself off, and try something completely different. When one thing fails, it might open doors for something new and better to come along. In the face of failure, you learn to get creative and to pursue new avenues.
 
Get a Second Chance
 
Failure is rarely fatal. It’s good to brush yourself off and try again. Sometimes, rather than changing directions, failing teaches us to get up and give it another go. You get a second chance to do it the way you wanted to the first time. You can take the lessons you learned and put them to better use.
 
Become Driven
 
Failing can solidify your resolve and push you forward to do better. When you make a mistake and things fall apart, your strength and resilience surface. You’ll see what you’re made of. This can be incredibly motivating. Failure shows your true character. Even if you give up on that project, chances are you’ll make the decision to move on to something else. You’ll see you have the grit and determination to continue.
 
Now you see just how beneficial failure can be. There’s no need to give in and let your inner naysayer win. Grant yourself some grace, it’s okay to make mistakes. In fact, great things can come from them.