Essay about a memorable moment of failure
Answers
Answer:
I used to be one of those people who went through life trying to avoid failure as much as possible until a recent incident made me realize that failure is imperative. Let me elaborate…
May 12, 2014. The very first day of my very first job. After a lot of soul-searching, I had landed a job as a technical writer in a company whose values matched mine: open culture, friendly faces, and flexible work hours. The job itself wasn’t really my thing, but everything else was picture perfect. What could go wrong?
Just three months had gone by when something happened that changed my life: my body gave up on me.
A little over a month ago, I had undergone a major surgery. And although I had got a clean bill of health from my doctor right away, the thing about surgery is that you cannot tell when complications will arise. And that’s why I wound up at the doctor’s office, confused and scared of what was happening to my body. As he walked in with a solemn face, I imagined the very worst, but not what he actually had to say: stop working until your body heals.
The instant he said those words I felt like a total failure. I couldn’t last even three months into my first job – what on earth was wrong with me?!
Inadequacy hit me hard and I had no idea how to deal with it. In the coming months, I realized that my sickness was actually a blessing in disguise. I now had time to do the one thing I always wanted to do but had put off to avoid failure. Now that I had all the time in the world and nothing to lose, I decided it was time to free fall.
That ‘one thing’ was freelance writing. The freelance lifestyle has long been glorified and I wanted to see what the fuss was all about. It was only when I plunged into it did I realize that it was simply not for me. In fact, I hated it! (Yes, I did give it time).
As I got better, I finally listened to my inner voice and decided to move away from the toxic mentality of choosing a career that ‘utilized’ my degree. Instead, I decided to do what I had always wanted to do, no matter what.
Today I am in the pink of health, on the hunt for a job as a content writer. Oh, and in the best shape I’ve ever been.
So was that a moment of failure? Nope. It was actually a moment of success. I was just blind to it then.
The instant he said those words I felt like a total failure. I couldn’t last even three months into my first job – what on earth was wrong with me?!
Inadequacy hit me hard and I had no idea how to deal with it. In the coming months, I realized that my sickness was actually a blessing in disguise. I now had time to do the one thing I always wanted to do but had put off to avoid failure. Now that I had all the time in the world and nothing to lose, I decided it was time to free fall.
That ‘one thing’ was freelance writing. The freelance lifestyle has long been glorified and I wanted to see what the fuss was all about. It was only when I plunged into it did I realize that it was simply not for me. In fact, I hated it! (Yes, I did give it time).
As I got better, I finally listened to my inner voice and decided to move away from the toxic mentality of choosing a career that ‘utilized’ my degree. Instead, I decided to do what I had always wanted to do, no matter what.
Today I am in the pink of health, on the hunt for a job as a content writer. Oh, and in the best shape I’ve ever been.
So was that a moment of failure? Nope. It was actually a moment of success. I was just blind to it then.
The instant he said those words I felt like a total failure. I couldn’t last even three months into my first job – what on earth was wrong with me?!
Inadequacy hit me hard and I had no idea how to deal with it. In the coming months, I realized that my sickness was actually a blessing in disguise. I now had time to do the one thing I always wanted to do but had put off to avoid failure. Now that I had all the time in the world and nothing to lose, I decided it was time to free fall.
That ‘one thing’ was freelance writing. The freelance lifestyle has long been glorified and I wanted to see what the fuss was all about. It was only when I plunged into it did I realize that it was simply not for me. In fact, I hated it! (Yes, I did give it time).
As I got better, I finally listened to my inner voice and decided to move away from the toxic mentality of choosing a career that ‘utilized’ my degree. Instead, I decided to do what I had always wanted to do, no matter what.
Today I am in the pink of health, on the hunt for a job as a content writer. Oh, and in the best shape I’ve ever been.
So was that a moment of failure? Nope. It was actually a moment of success. I was just blind to it then.