Failure is an Option

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By Zoe Thomson

The uncertainty of the future can be a scary thing. It’s why I mostly hold back from going after what I really want because it’s ‘too risky’. But if we always held back, we’d never reach our full potential.

There’s lots of things I’d love to do; when I daydream — which is often — I’ll imagine a different Zoe. She lives much more freely than I do and just does what she believes in without any real fear of failure. She’s educated, well travelled, and more confident than I am. Why can’t I be her?

If I won the lottery…

We often say what we’d like to do if we won the lottery: buy a house, travel the world, donate it all to charity, never work again. Why is this life always reserved for a far-off fantasy? Is it because it’s actually unattainable, or because we make it so?

Currently, in February 2018, I have 29 locations on my travel bucket list. If I take one holiday every year (and that’s a luxury for a lot of people!) I’ll be 51 by the time I’ve visited all the parts of the world I’ve always wanted to see, and I’m determined to do it. I will do it.

I’m working a full-time job that doesn’t fulfil me, but leaves me content enough to support myself while I work towards the things that I really want to do. I suppose I could just quit my job and tick every location off the list before I’m 30, but that wouldn’t be reasonable, because there’s other things I’d like to do in life that require money as well.

If I knew I wouldn’t fail

For me right now, it’s all about planning, and prioritising my goals. But without a doubt, if I knew I wouldn’t fail, I’d pack my bags and set off on the adventure of a lifetime around the world – I’m sure it would be unforgettable.

I’d move out of the town I’ve lived in for years, the place I’ve long outgrown, and plant my feet anywhere else that holds more excitement and promise, with a guarantee of a job I’d love, an affordable home, and a vibrant new city that’d offer me new opportunities. But nobody can guarantee all of that, can they? So you just have to roll the dice.

Failures bring opportunity

I’d also love to dive fully into my writing, be a full-time mental health advocate, campaigner and writer, maybe publish a few books? I’ve been told before that I could write a book, that I should write a book, but what could I write about? Could I do it? What if it failed?

Failures in life give us an opportunity to learn, no matter how big or small. No life is perfect, none are without frustration or humiliation or loss. Everyone is scared of failure to some degree, but if we all lived in fear, none of us would really be living at all.

Reproduced with permission, originally posted on nolightwithoutdarkness.com