How To Overcome That Failing Feeling

I can't tell you how many times a day I feel this panic feeling. That panic feeling that I'm failing at life and at my job. While I know that I am not actually truly failing and that I have had some success, there are many things that occur during the day that trigger this panic I get. I would say it happens when I am reminded of how little time in the day there is or the risks of doing the things that need to be done in order to achieve my goals in life. It's when I am reminded of another thing that is being added to my long list of to-do's. A list where everything is important and needs to be done ASAP. Sometimes I even experience that failing feeling when I am reminded that I could have done better on whatever I was working on. And even when I am feeling happy at that current moment, I know it won't last long because I am thinking towards the future and looking at my failure through my self doubt, thinking that I am not good enough to do something in the future.

Lately, the biggest triggers that have been getting to me are the things that happen at work and the risks of every choice that I make. We pride ourselves on our efforts and the successes we have but that doesn't mean that decisions in the future are going to be easy. Every time I make a big decision, I look at it from 20 million different angles and look at the effect of that decision and what the consequences could be. Now my other trigger, my job, is something that I truly have no control over but I would like to get a handle on. Every day is different there and I would love to be able to know what that day at work is going to hold for me but I will never know. The relationships I have there are tested everyday and make me wonder if I made the right decisions leading up to that point and if I didn't how do I change that.

Have you ever had these feelings? Like you aren't good enough and you don't actually know what you are doing? Our minds play tricks on us all the time and it is incredible how it makes us doubt ourselves and what we can do.

While no one wants to ever constantly feel like they are failing, many times those failures lead to great successes. I know that if I was willing to do subpar work and not care about pushing myself at all, I know that I wouldn't have this big of a fear of failing. So it is sometimes a good experience to have this failing feeling as long as that standard of achievement is high. But thinking about that fear over and over again or letting it overcome me and my emotions, will stop me from doing the things that I need to do in order to succeed. My new goal in life is to find different ways to feel good about what I accomplish and the things that I achieve and to not beat myself down so much because of all of it.

I mentioned that I think a lot of my fears of failing and that panic feeling come from all the things I have to do and the things I want to do. Those 2 things added together, equal very messy feelings. If there was infinite time in the day, I would be able to get everything done at the highest quality that is possible. But that's not reality and that will never really be able to happen. Our lives are a balancing act and everyday we try our hardest to do just that but we try balancing too many things-- family, friends, mental health, physical health, work, etc. These are the biggest areas in most people's lives and when we feel like we haven't kept that balance between all of those things, we feel guilty and that we have failed. I know when I get in bed at the end of the day and finally close my eyes, I am thinking about what is to come and all the things I have to do and try to jump ahead.

I think the most important thing is to try and not let the fear of failing take over my mind. I know how fear can be and if it gets big enough it can be paralyzing, stopping me from stepping outside of my comfort zone and doing the things that I really want to do. But I am finally taking a stand and stopping that because I will no longer let it stop me from achieving my dreams and the things that I want to do. Now, whenever I feel the panic feeling start, I try to stop and figure out what it is and where it is coming from so I can stop it or face it head on. Often times I am able to remind myself of the positive things in life and all the possibilities that can come from taking the risks that I am taking. While I know that failure is always possible, success is also always right there and possible to achieve as well.

Have you felt this too? How do you try to overcome it?

I hope for the people out there that have this feeling too, it was something relatable to read about and learn about another person's fear. Or even an eye opener to people who thought that this never really happens and learned how to help others around them.

Love, D