Why you need to Share your Failure Stories on Medium
Encouraging others that failure is only a temporary bump on the road to achievement.
Curation seems to be the gold standard of good writing on Medium. It is a sign of accomplishment, and that’s why many medium writers tout their achievements by sharing snippets of their curation notifications. This is not a bad thing at all; it is good to celebrate great feats. They have worked hard, engaged their creative minds to produce their best works, why shouldn’t they let their fellow medium writers know about it? They deserve should get the accolades.
At least that was my thought until I recently saw a post on LinkedIn from a guy that actually shared his failure story, by posting a rejection letter that he got from a company where he applied for employment. Yes, you read it right, he posted on his LinkedIn status a letter of rejection, for the entire world to see.
This got me thinking if we can share our accomplishments, why can’t we also share our failures? Sharing and touting where we have succeeded alone denies the fact that failure is part of the learning process, that will eventually get us to success. Why do we find it easier to share the news that is complimentary to us, but harder to share things critical of us? The answer is simple.
In the world that is massively influenced by social media, we all want to put our best foot forward in everything we do. We pick the best pictures to post on Facebook or Instagram; we love those that praise us and agree with our position and despise and condemn those that disagree with our opinion.
Here are some reasons why we are all so eager to share our success stories:
“Success usually comes to those who are too busy to be looking for it.” — Henry David Thoreau
1. We all love to feel successful: Sharing success stories will let people attach success to you. If you write an article on Medium that got over 10k claps in less than two days, that is a success by all accounts. When people see such a high number of views claps on your post, they will be curious and naturally want to read it. This will further increase your post views, meaning more success for you.
2. We want to be appreciated: Promoting those success stories make people appreciate your work. Who doesn’t want to be recognized? When people value your effort, it will encourage you to continue working more and producing more good stuff. If you write on a particular topic and the topic got curated, it will boost your confidence, and you will want to continue to write on a similar topic.
3. Success breeds success: By sharing your success data, you attract more people to yourself, especially other successful ones. You will be seen as an authority in the field. For example, if you publish five stories in a week, and all the five stories got curated, you have earned a bragging right. If you post such achievement on any social media, people will ask you how you did it. They will want to connect with you and associate with you.
Here are three reasons why you should share your failure stories
“Only those who dare to fail greatly can ever achieve greatly.” — Robert F. Kennedy
1. It will help others know that they are not alone: By sharing your failure stories, you are helping to instill hope in others, by showing them that they are not alone. When people know that failure is not specific to them, they can gain confidence, energy, and the motivation to keep writing and never give up. The reverse is the case; if someone found out that everyone else is achieving success, making $1000 on Medium, while they are only making 10c from month to month, they will soon quit if they feel that they are the only “failure” among other “successful” people.
2. It encourages you to get better: If you are willing to learn and become better, you will understand those areas where you fall short. You will seek to know what you are doing wrong and explore ways to get better and improve your skills. Getting better will give you a shot at achieving your goals to write an article worthy of curation.
3. It makes you appreciate your progress: When you learn from your failure stories, you will see improvements over time. My first article on Medium wasn’t as great as my tenth. I wrote my first article without my readers on my mind, and it attracts only a few views. Looking back at that article today, I do not see it as a failure, but rather a learning opportunity, to know what readers want, and to create works that will be useful, informative, and relevant to my readers. That look back makes me appreciate the progress that I’ve made as a writer.
Success is good; it’s fun; everyone loves success and aim to be successful at whatever they do. I am encouraging you to share your failure stories so that you can inspire and motivate others to know that failure is not permanent or final. It is a bump on the road to success, which creates learning opportunities for only those seeking to improve and get better at what they do.
