A Mindset That Empowers Us To Face Defeats To Continue The Journey.

We all have our journey to reach our destination. We endure day and night to achieve what we want. Everyone has a different want and a different way to fulfil that want. 

The path and the destination differ. However, what is common for all of us is the struggle we face along the way.

The difficult circumstances and the unsurmountable challenges test us for what we are along the way. All of these challenges filters out the winners from the quitters. There are no losers, only quitters.

Some see the unsurmountable challenges as a sign of halt. Others see those challenges as an opportunity to augment their skills to overcome the challenges. Those who quit from their journey due to challenges settle for mediocrity. Those who persist even in the face of failure reach their goal at one point. 

The champions prevail amidst the challenges with a different mindset. Maya Angelou highlights with her wise words points out that how should we face defeat in this journey to our dreams. 

Champions know that they may face multiple defeats along the way, but they must never lay down their weapons. Surrendering is never an option for them. 

Life is not like a bed of roses for them. Champions face the same level of difficulty that everyone faces in the journey. What differentiates them from the mediocre is the mindset with which they face difficulties and defeats. 

Failing means game over to some. 

While for others, it means the opportunity to improvise and attempt once again. They continue the journey even in the face of the grave defeat as for them losing is a part of the journey, and learning from that loss makes them more skilful and gives them some experience to move ahead and the pitfalls to avoid. 

We all lose when we give up. Otherwise, losing is the part of the journey where life gives us a chance to learn something new and optimize our skills to attain perfection. 

We lose when we give up the journey. Failure is not permanent defeat. Failure prepares us to handle the success waiting for us at the end of the struggle. 

The success story does more than motivate us. It sometimes plants the seeds of self-doubts. We view and compare our life to the journey of other successful ones and measure our progress with their scale. They might have achieved more than us but that should not be the cause of doubting ourselves.

Everyone has the journey that they are destined to take. Everyone has the destiny to fulfil and everyone has a unique path to walk to reach that destiny. We can not travel on the path charted by others to reach our destiny. We have to forge our own path to reach where our destiny lies.

The majority of us call it a day after facing a defeat. The main reason behind giving up after a defeat is that the major success stories never or cautiously highlight the failures in those stories. We infer from those stories that legends never fail and if they somehow fail it is limited to one or two occasions as highlighted by biopics.

But what we fail to see is the struggle that is hidden behind the curtains of those legends. Their success was never a stroke of luck or a blessing bestowed from above, but it was persistence backed by course correction. They improvise and persist till they make it. Giving up is never an option for them and that is why they learn from failure and carry on.

Remember the words of Maya Angelou:

"You will face many defeats in your life, but never let yourself be defeated."