their abilities?! Fortunately it doesn’t have to
be this way.
In the words of Narriyah Waheed, “I don’t pay
attention to the world ending; it has ended
for me many times and began again in the
morning”. If we conquer failure, what else
is there left to fear? We develop a resilience
to set-backs and treat the experience as
informational rather than demoralising.
Manuscripts by psychological expert Dr.
Rosabeth Moss Kanter, define going back to
the drawing board as a means to enhance
creativity. This in turn creates a higher level
of self-awareness. ‘Good failing’ also means
that we welcome a change in routine.
It strengthens our ability to overcome
weaknesses and helps refine our positive
attributes.
There’s a piece of wisdom from Japan known
as Sankofa. It translates to “Go back and fetch
it”. Looking back into the past to understand
the present and build a better future. After
all, learning what not to do is as equally
important as learning what works. Failure, in
the pursuit of something wonderful, always
has a divine purpose and even in moments
of a painful, personal renaissance, we can
redefine the process and proceed to do it
better.
25
“IT GIVES US THE
N O T I O N T H AT
‘ FA I L I N G I S N OT
A L W AY S F A I L U R E ’, I N
THE LONG TERM IT
I S O N LY W H AT Y O U
P E R C E I V E I T TO B E ”
IMBO/ ISSUE 32/ '14