Is Failure the opposite of success or part of success?

"It's impossible to live without failing at something, unless you live so cautiously that you might have well not have lived at all, in which case you have failed by default"

— J.K Rowling

The question is not whether there is someone who have not failed before, the question is how each one dealt with failure. Do you decide to brood on it in regret? Take charge of it? Blame yourself or others? Or decide to try something entirely new?

Well it's without doubt we have all at one time or the other tried all the options listed above, but which of these is the best option to opt for, when should you and how should you?

First let me establish that regret is a waste of time. There are two roads out of it. Decide to try again or move to the next thing. You can decide to try again especially if what you regret is something that can be rectified, for example, you regretted not travelling to Dubai last summer as you had earlier planned, which might be due to inadequate fund or any other thing. That situation can still be salvaged. But regretting you are not an Olympics Medalist now at age 65 because you quitted running at age 6 is not a way to go. But instead you can decide to put in for the Senior Olympics.

The best way to handle failure is to take advantage of it. Every failure has the potential to turn to a successful investment depending on the perspective you decide to see it from. Do you see good in everything or you see bad in every good? Do you like Thomas Edison decide to see 1000 ways a light bulb cannot be invented rather than avenues to throw in the towel?

I feel there are ways to manage failure, and I manage any failure I encounter by following these:

1. Perception is Everything.

You have to change how you see things. In today's world, it's easy to see the negative aspect of everything, since almost everything seems not to be working. But the quick question we can ask is how some big companies are still making a head way and impacting millions in the process? That's because they decide to see the opportunity in every downturn. In fact every recession is mostly followed by a boom, because that period of gloom opened up people's mind to bloom.

Just the other day I read of how parents with medical issues can have a biological baby of their own where normally shouldn't be possible. In the midst of sickness and pain, there is an avenue for a breakthrough. All you have to do is open your mind, think outside the box and change your outlook on life.

2. Do something worthwhile with the opportunities you see.

It's as easy as that. Let me give you a vivid example. I had some issues at work some time back. It was so wreaking that normally I might have quitted and left the organization, but I thought to myself, "life doesn't always pose a challenge we can't withstand, plus what can I learn from this that can come in handy tomorrow?" Guess what I did, I sat my ass still in that place, got things right, and on track, and learnt some incredible things I might not have learnt and would probably have learnt in a more heartbreaking manner later on. Now I am a better person, ready to take on the world.

3. It won't always be easy.

Nothing is easy. Even the ones you think are easy are the ones someone else has paid the price for.

Keep at heart that there would be occurrences that would throw you off balance. It's not always easy to keep trying something till you succeed or keep seeing the positive side of everything and make the most of it when all that is written on it are negatives. But successful people do tough things to get beautiful results and knowing seeing failure as failure, and letting it remain same is not a good call then you as a successful person that you are would strive to make tough decisions that would make your life better.

4. Recognize the thin line between walking away and trying again.

Failure could mean the wrong combination of tools that produced the wrong result and will keep producing a wrong result if not checked. Only a fool will keep doing the same thing the same way and expect a different result they say. So either you reassess what you are doing, the tools used and how it's been done, and then try again; OR failure could simply mean try something new entirely. Remember the examples I gave above of the traveling during summer and the Olympics medalist? Therefore recognize that line and follow it.

Failure is part of success not the opposite of success. To be great you definitely have to fail at something. Failure could be a blessing if properly channeled, but first you have to understand that you can't get everything right at the very first go. But rather than say "you win some, you lose some", see it as "you win some, you learn some", with that you are ready to take on the world.

What are the steps that have proven effective that you have made use of in time past? How do you normally handle failure? How do you intend to, going forward?