Hello, hello, hello! How are you all?
So the good news is I’m writing again (yay for conquering the writers block!) The bad news? Well, it isn’t the most inspiring title I’ve ever come up with BUT bare with me…
Yes, I failed. At too many things and on to many occasions to remember. I’ve had failed jobs, failed relationships and failed ideas. Yup – that’s a whole lotta failure for one little person and yet, despite the words I’m writing, I still feel pretty up beat about it all. Why you might ask? Well, simply put, I’ve began to see failure in a completely different light. You see without failure there can never be success.
Every successful person you look up to – in whatever industry that may be, I can pretty much guarantee ‘failed’ time and time again before they claimed that success. Take J.K Rowling and Steve Jobs for example, both got knocked down for their now iconic creations many times before it all finally clicked into place. I guess what I’m trying to say, is that failure is part and parcel of life and without it our lives would be pretty boring!
This post/rant came about because once again my mind ran away with itself, started making comparisons to other people and letting all the insecurities cloud my judgement. January blues hit and hit hard and it was a Youtube video in fact that knocked me out of it. The Youtube video in question was posted by non other than Will Smith. Now I really hope the majority of my readers will know who Will Smith is but if not – get yourself onto Netflix right now and binge on ‘The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air’ it is AMAZING (you can thank me later.)
Anyway as I was saying, Will Smith has started his own Youtube channel *woo hoo* and one of his posts, albeit short and sweet said everything I needed to hear. You can watch the video here but these are my favourite quotes, the best bits and my personal takeaways…
FAIL EARLY, FAIL OFTEN, FAIL FORWARD
FAILURE IS WHERE ALL THE LESSONS ARE
FAILURE IS WHERE GROWTH IS
PRACTISE IS CONTROLLED FAILURE
Coat – c/o Boden, Jumper – c/o Boden, Jeans – & Other Stories, Bag – Chanel,
Bobble Hat – Think Bubbles, Glasses – c/o Glasses Direct, Boots – c/o Boden
Photography – Rebecca Chivers
So there we have it. A pretty wise man that Will Smith. If anything after either watching the video or reading the above, I hope like me your head feels a little less cloudy. It’s so easy to focus on the negative and to really wear yourself down because you made a mistake. If anything, take comfort in the fact that you are one of many and that failure to fail means living life without taking chances and that my dears is just plain boring! Live life on the edge, take that leap and make that change and if you fail, getup, pat yourself down and do it all over again. Life is hard sometimes but that’s OK. Although you may feel alone, you’re not – there are millions of people feeling the exact same way. No one is perfect and often when sharing a thought or a problem you realise how many people are going through it with you. So please, watch the video – listen to the words and let me know your thoughts on failure and if the video made you think differently about it.
K x
Great outfit, I like the shade of the coat. I'm a living failure – I've dropped out of University so many times, I've got horrible job and literally sometimes I ask myself why do I still exist. First time when I've dropped out my parents were pissed, now they just don't care anymore.
Thank you so much for your honest and raw comment. I didn't go to traditional university, some of the greatest business people and creators around the world also didn't, they dropped out or took a different route, some didn't even complete school. Keep your chin up, we all have our own journey that works for us. Day jobs sometimes suck but we do them to make money, use your spare time to think about what you really want to be doing and slowly put it into action. one small step at a time! You've got this! And your existance is so worth while, always remember that! Kate xxx