“HOW DO YOU HANDLE FAILURE AARON?” – THE POWER OF STORIES
I am a fan of sharing my stories. I share my failures. I share my wins. Sometimes this is a coping strategy for me and a way to keep myself accountable as I keep climbing my ladder of life. It is also a way of inspiring others towards growth. As a result, I have had the privilege of hearing the stories of many people who have chosen to share with me privately. This is a humbling position for me but one which I am conscious comes with massive responsibilities.
Considering the fact that I am not immune to failures or the pain that comes with it, most times, the tool I deploy to support people who confide in me is “MY STORY”. On many occasions, it has inspired them. As fragile beings, we all want to know that we are not alone in our time of pain. So instead of making generic statements like “ohh do not worry, you will be fine”, I share my story with them and acknowledge that I am fragile too and it is a phase that will pass. I have found that sharing stories is my most powerful tool to make impact.
This chat describes one of such encounters I have had with many people whose stories have also blessed me and inspired me to keep sharing my failures and wins.
In this case, this is a friend with whom I attended school with:
- He failed his M.Sc defense and felt bad.
- He reached out to me in March.
- I shared the story of my many failures.
- He got inspired and dived back into the sea.
- He returned in August with good news of catching the fish. He passed his internal defense. Congrats to him.
- I am grateful he accepted for me to share this.
Stories are powerful. Share them if you can. You may enjoy the likes, claps from it or suffer from the frowns from those who see it differently but let your focus be simple: I want to inspire someone or myself. You will be amazed at how much your story can do.
Our lives are stories, your story may make more impact when shared.
See you at the top.
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