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THE FAX OF LIFE

A Weekly Service To The Business Community From SVCC

FACING FAILURE - PART 2
By Rick Warren

Last week I shared the five most common causes for failure. Today I'd like to wrap it up by suggesting the steps to starting over when you've experienced a failure:

ACCEPT RESPONSIBILITY FOR YOUR OWN FAILURE. If you've made a mistake - admit it! Welcome to the human race. Don't blame others. To blame is to "b-lame." Losers love to blame bad luck...the economy...the boss...their spouse...or even God for misfortune. But winners never accuse others and never excuse themselves when they fail. In 1974, after an 88 game winning streak, UCLA basketball lost to Notre Dame in a game they had led by 11 points. The next day's headline read "Coach Wooden says 'Blame me!'" Wooden was a winner. "Anyone who refuses to admit his mistakes can never be successful. But if he confesses and forsakes them, he gets another chance." Prov. 28:13 (LB)
RECOGNIZE THE BENEFITS OF FAILURE.
- It shows you what doesn't work. Thomas Edison said, "Don't call it a failure. Call it an education!"
- It forces you to be more creative. You look for new ways.
- It prevents arrogance and egotism. If everything you did was a stunning success, no could live with you!
- It causes you to reevaluate what's important in life. Failure is one way God gets us to reflect on the direction of our lives.
  "Sometimes it takes a painful situation to make us change our ways." Pr. 20:30 (GN)
ASK GOD FOR WISDOM TO UNDERSTAND THE CAUSE.
Why did I fail? Is there any reason I might have set myself up to fail? There are many unconscious reasons we sometimes sabotage our own efforts:
- The fear of success: Success may mean handling more responsibility than I want to carry.
- Guilt: If you feel you don't deserve to succeed, you may have set yourself up to fail.
- Resentment: Some people fail as a way of getting even with those who are pressuring them to succeed.
  "If you lack wisdom, ask God, who gives generously to all..." James 1:5
FORGET THE PAST AND FOCUS ON THE FUTURE. Your past is past! It's water under the bridge. You can't change it so you may as well stop worrying about it.
"Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on..." Phil. 4:1

Until next week...
FOL#34

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