Success is more difficult to handle than failure!
After coaching for 45 years, I have witnessed success and failure at all levels. It takes a very strong foundation to handle both extremes. One must realize that if you have experienced success, you are very fortunate! If you have experienced continued success, it is not because you have been lucky. If you are experiencing long term success, it is because you have a vision, plan and carried out the plan as well as adjusted to the organizations or programs who are chasing your success. The danger with success lies within the people who do not know how to handle it. It is very difficult to remain humble, keep learning, remaining hungry for improvement and accepting the recommendations of competent associates. The result of not paying attention to how your organization handles success can lead to, COMPLACENCY!
Complacency is a smug feeling of well-being while being unaware of the of the comfort that you are feeling while others are studying your success, measuring your tactics and planning to attack your success. Think about it, what does success mean and how does it determine the future outcome. I always think back to the “Rocky Movies” and how success influenced his bout with Clubber Lang!
He had to experience failure and complete lack of confidence before he could move forward. I know it is only a movie,but it has a great message for those that are listening. Failure is not the end. It is a stimulator for growth and the development of achievement and maturity. Seriously, if there was never any failure there would be no growth, development or improvement in any entity.
Failure is another word for adversity. Adversity is God’s way of stimulating us to grow. Without failure, we cannot grow because we all like to feel comfortable. Failure is not our enemy, it is our friend. It is our friend because used correctly, it can cause us to grow and champion the situation by learning from the mistakes, lack of planning, poor planning or simply not paying attention to what needs to change!