Failure is not an option, but it will happen.

There are specific times in my life which I can recall, when failure was deemed “not an option” but it happened regardless.  During those times I went into each challenge very well prepared with a goal in mind, in my mind there was nothing that could stand in my way.  Obviously in each instance things did not work out as planned and I can remember a feeling which was more than disappointment, dejection and grief was more like it.  Almost every time I felt like my world had come to an end, the pit in the bottom of my stomach was eating away at me and I just wanted to crawl into a hole and make it all go away.  I had let myself down and more importantly others who were depending on me.  Such are the feelings that accompany failure, wounds that only time can heal.

What does this big pity party have to do with prepping?  Quite simply we have to be prepared to deal with failure before and during SHTF.  If you browse many of the other prepper/survival websites you’ll see quite a bit of machismo out there (probably some here too), lots of Type A personalities which are ready for whatever comes their way.  There is one problem with all of that, many Type A people have a really hard time dealing with failure because they simply refuse to acknowledge the possibility of it.  If T-SHTF and something goes wrong, you’ll quickly be able to identify the Type A people who are not trained to deal with failure.  They will be the ones sulking in the corner or lashing out for no reason, or maybe even tossing furniture around in displays of rage.   This could severely impact  the dynamic of a family or community if the pity party goes on long enough.  In a worst case scenario the Type A person tries to overcompensate for the failure and does something really stupid.

Two teams face off in the Superbowl, both know in their hearts they will prevail but someone always goes home with their head hung low.  If you watch the Olympics you’ll see many young talents at the top of their game, most of them won’t even reach the podium.  In combat not every mission is a success, many times people die due to the mistakes of the planners or those executing on the objective.  Failure happens, and although we do not like to acknowledge it we must be prepared to deal with it…especially for those who are depending on us for leadership and guidance.  

Every time I look back at how I screwed the pooch I see which tangent that put me on, and in almost every circumstance things eventually worked out.  Sure there isn’t a pot of gold at the end of every rainbow, but the reward isn’t always in the finish.  Sometimes the reward lies in the adversities you face throughout the journey itself.  By being prepared for and learning how to deal with failure we can grow, mature, and be better leaders during disasters or SHTF type events.