The Bigger The Goal, The Greater The Setbacks
“Success consists of going from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm.” — Winston Churchill.
The scale of your setbacks matters little in the end, as long as you remain committed towards your goals. How does this idea appeal to you? Are you willing to endure failure and defeat to achieve your goals? Your answer will reveal what you’re willing to accept to accomplish them. If our goals are imbued with a strong purpose, setbacks mustn’t be seen as detrimental to our success but as part of the process. Our capacity to handle setbacks means we interpret them as defeats or learning points to help us achieve our goals. The degree to which we tolerate setbacks is proportionate to our willingness to overcome them and take action to achieve our outcomes.
Think about your current goals. Have you experienced setbacks in recent times? How did you overcome them? Setbacks can teach us a lot about ourselves because they reveal our character strengths and renew our commitment to our goals. We become more efficient in pursuing actions aligned with our highest intent instead of wasting time on insignificant tasks. Setbacks help us develop the determination to embark upon our goals. Unsurprisingly, the bigger the goal, the greater the setbacks. This is attributed to the learning curve and processes required to achieve value. We mustn’t obsess over our defeats but learn the lessons embedded in the experiences. Dr. Alex Lickerman, author of The Undefeated Mind, argues that true resilience isn’t about forced positivity or ignoring hardship. Instead, as he writes, an “undefeated mind” focuses on finding real solutions, even when those solutions are difficult or unwelcomed. It’s about persevering through exhaustion and acknowledging that defeat only comes from giving up, not from setbacks themselves.
Don’t Wish It Was Easier, Wish You Were Better
“How many people are completely successful in every department of life? Not one. The most successful people are the ones who learn from their mistakes and turn their failures into opportunities.” — Zig Ziglar.
I don’t know about you, but I’ve encountered countless setbacks, personally and professionally, over the years. It affected me since I associated defeat with my self-esteem. Nevertheless, after numerous setbacks, I stopped caring about losing and focused on learning. I developed a Growth Mindset instead of a Fixed Mindset, as the Professor of Psychology Carol Dweck teaches in her book Mindset: The New Psychology of Success. Have you experienced this, where you hit rock bottom and stop caring about failing? During this time, I noticed a shift in consciousness and saw positive results. I realized my setbacks were not indicative of my character but part of the process to achieve my goals. I didn’t stop caring about my goals or the outcome; I cared more than before. However, my failures and setbacks allowed me to develop an insatiable hunger for my goals and work proficiently to achieve them.
Can you associate with the growth that comes from setbacks? Conversely, how do you deal with defeat? Does it affect your self-esteem or give you more hunger to go after your goals? What we experience in the face of our setbacks determines how we assault our goals and highest ambitions. Setbacks can be hidden blessings since they develop our strengths and expose our weaknesses. This helps us to sharpen the saw of our resiliency, for it was the American motivational speaker Jim Rohn who once said: “Don’t wish it was easier, wish you were better. Don’t wish for less problems, wish for more skills to overcome them. Don’t wish for less challenges, wish for more wisdom.” He made the case that wishing away our problems does little to help us overcome them. We mustn’t retreat from our difficulties but grow confident to conquer them each time. Therefore, our willingness to embrace setbacks equals our capacity to endure defeat. It is said that we fail on our way to success. This is the premise of what the former Prime Minister of England, Winston Churchill, meant when he said: “Success consists of going from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm.” He knew setbacks were part of life and that we mustn’t let them affect our motivation and enthusiasm; instead, we can use them to fuel our efforts.
Are you getting a sense that your setbacks can be used to your advantage instead of seeing them through the eyes of defeat? You have nothing to lose as long as you remain resolute towards your goals. Every action yields an outcome, and our success is built upon the following actions. If we give up because of failure or a loss of enthusiasm, we miss the opportunity to build on our earlier efforts. Think of links in a chain where each one depends on the other to hold it together. If we keep moving towards our goals, we will reach them or grow significantly, even if we miss the mark. Giving up awards us nothing but regret and frustration, relieved by being unconcerned with defeat. What are you putting off now that demands your attention? How can you inject enthusiasm and a new mindset into an existing goal or project? After all, the measure of your setbacks will be insignificant if you’re willing to endure the tale of defeat.
The First Step Toward a Breakthrough
If you’re ready to move past what’s been holding you back and create real momentum, a 30-minute Breakthrough Coaching Session is the perfect place to begin. In just one focused conversation, we’ll uncover what’s keeping you stuck, shift your perspective, and help you design a clear next step toward meaningful progress.
Tony Fahkry
Expert Life Coach
