Bouncing Back from Failure

By: Katherine Konrad, Marketing Project Manager and Celarity Guest Blogger

So … someone else got that job, promotion, project, (fill in the blank), for which you were contending. They got it, not you. You are obviously worthless person – a failure with no marketable skills who didn’t deserve (fill in the blank). Also, your boss personally hates you. Honestly, why don’t you just go pack up your desk right now?

Brains can be amazing things. Amazingly awful, that is. Where does all this negative self-talk come from? Surely someone wouldn’t consciously afflict themselves in this manner? Time Magazine says it’s your left brain throwing the punches. Ah, so Lefty is doing all the smack-talk. Right on.

Check yourself, before you wreck yourself.

Before you start packing, take a minute to be critical of the conclusions your Left brain is drawing about your so-called “failure.” Though it’s only trying to make contextual sense of factual information, it doesn’t mean the conclusion’s the only answer, or even a correct one! Remember that you are not Straight Outta Options.

Negative thoughts are the thief of motivation and energy. Break the habit of humoring buzzkill thoughts. If your Right brain isn’t doing the trick alone, run these gut-punches by someone you trust to see if they’re really something worth beating yourself up over. Spoiler alert: they’re not.

Don’t ignore, explore. But with a deadline.

OK, you’re sitting at your NOT packed up desk. Great! What now? It still kinda stings doesn’t it? Failure feels gross, it feels like a loss. And when there is a loss, there must be mourning.

Mourn your heart out. And brain – don’t forget your brain. But be critical of why you are upset, what you can do to change it next time, and most importantly, by when you will be moving on.

Why this is important is that it gives you a sense of control and ownership over a situation that originally felt pretty chaotic. Control over these feelings is yours now. YOURS! Mwhahahaha.

You’re not special.

I mean, you are. I’m sure you are. Your mom even says so, right? But really, in terms of failure – you’re not. So many people before you have failed, and so many after you will fail.

Theodor Geisel, popularly known as “Dr Seuss”, was rejected 27 times before publishing, and then a walk down the right side of the street in NYC and BAM! Sam-I-Am a success!

Unless you’re the Chewbacca Lady from YouTube, success does not happen overnight. Failure can sometimes be just what the Doctor ordered.

That ish cray.

Though Merriam-Webster would argue that the definition of crazy is “Erratic behavior” (not arguing), Albert Einstein has said the definition of crazy is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result.

If you’ve found you’re not making progress after several attempts. It’s time to stop, collaborate and listen to the Left brain – under Right brain’s supervision, of course:

1. Re-evaluate your tactics; Different networking connection? Another job? Another industry all-together?
2. Speaking of networking; take a fresh look at opportunities. In my experience, the most opportunity was reaped from those I least expected.
3. Are your expectations “cray”? The best goals are attainable goals.

Perseverance is an admirable trait, but sometimes you’ve got to recognize when it’s time to cut your losses and move on. Or shall I say, bounce on?

If you’re in a career rut, don’t give up! Explore other Celarity Scoop blog posts to get you back in business. Or, sign-up for the Scoop Newsletter to get bi-weekly jobs, events, and news delivered straight to your inbox.

Katherine is currently a Marketing professional at Target, and an aspiring copywriter. She lives in a messy studio apartment in downtown Minneapolis.