6 Proven Strategies To Rebound From Failure

Long before Arianna Huffington launched Huffington Post, 36 publishers rejected her second book. Before Walt Disney built Disneyland, he was told he lacked creativity. Bill Gates’ first company was a disaster, with a product that barely worked.

Nobody wants to fail, but even the brightest and most successful people have faced this challenge at some point in their careers. Life is a constant seesaw. Most of us teeter between our achievements and our mistakes.

Some mistakes are greater than others. Blowing an important presentation, missing a big sale or losing out on a business opportunity certainly stings, but you know you’ll be able to bounce back. Then, there are times you’ve missed something much bigger. Your failure threatens to crush everything you’ve worked so hard to build. Then what?

Whatever you do, don’t lock yourself into despair. Everyone falls short from time to time, so your ultimate test is how you deal with failure. Pity and self-loathing won’t fix anything. Neither will pretending as if nothing happened.

Here are six simple strategies to help you learn from mistakes and use the experience to set yourself back on the path to success.