Member-only story
When we envision success we tend to treat it as a fixed state, an endgame. An end point which once reached then becomes set, locked, a permanent status. Once we defeat the villain they stay defeated and we forever remain the hero, the champion, the captain. The state and status are now ours to keep and, more to the point, they are now who we are. Our achieved success belongs to us so not only is it never supposed to be taken from us all of the work required to achieve it is now over. Our success is simply now a fact and forever will be. And we are completely wrong.
We tend to look at failure the same way, when it comes to the failures of others. Once someone has failed their status as defeated, a loser, unworthy, faulty, and of lesser value becomes set and locked. They are to be discounted, disregarded, and disqualified from any further considerations other than to assume all other attempts from them will be guaranteed to fail.
We don’t tend to be as absolute when it comes to our own failures. With regards to our own failures we are more than willing to allow and even embrace the ‘underdog’ loophole. We see ourselves as the star and thus the hero of our own story. Completely natural since we can only see the world through our own eyes. Thus we view our own failures as setbacks and…