The fear of failure can be a crippling feeling. Whether it's the struggle with personal pride, the feeling of rejection, or simply the internal disdain for not being successful. Whatever the motivating factor, fear over failing can inhibit your success significantly. I know from personal experience the deeply intimidating feeling of being observed by the world and the intense pressure associated with this feeling of scrutiny. Granted this is often a perceived feeling and lacking substance but the feeling exists none the less.

This feeling tends to force a tendency I hold already - the deep-seated desire for perfection. If I can release perfect software, if I can build a perfect company, if I can create the perfect culture then I won't fail. But what a ridiculous and impractical goal. Sure it sounds excellent but the reality is that no one is perfect. No plan is perfect. There will be failure.

An advisor once shared with me an important nugget of information that I hold on to now as I create and grow. He said,

"Have no doubt you will fail, you will zig and you will zag along your path as you build this company. Don't beat yourself up for that. Just keep your eyes focused on the goal and press on. There's no shame in learning"

Sure it's not necessarily new advice or revolutionary even; but in the moment it was exactly what I needed to hear. There's no shame in learning from failures and using them to make yourself better. The key lies in that simple statement. Rather than focusing on failure as a missed opportunity or a flaw in your person or process it is far better to think of those failures as learning moments. And if you learn from them-they weren't failures at all.

Failure isn't bad, the fear of failure can be. Ultimately the outlook you have and the way you deal with failure is far more important than the actual misstep. If you learn from the mistakes you make, if you use those failures as ways to improve your product, your business, even yourself, you'll be better as a result. I'd be so bold as to suggest you'll be better than if you hadn't experienced those failures at all. How many great inventions have you heard about which came to be as a direct result of a failure? There are story after story of incredible successes built on the back of a failure. In every instance it's the ability of the person to learn from their failure which makes all the difference.

So, maybe you're in a tough spot right now, maybe you're a bit paralyzed with the idea that you'll fail in the undertaking you're in the midst of. If so, I hope the advice I received and have shared with you now will help you to press on, make bold decisions, try new things, and even fail. Just be sure you learn from each failure; and who knows what you'll do next!