How did IKEA become so successful? One reason is that its founder was obsessed with failure. His belief was that you learn more from failure than success.

Well it's a good job I don't work for IKEA! I don't cope well with failure, or even the prospect of things not going perfectly. I'd rather not play the game than risk giving my inner critic more ammunition.

But recently I've had a new perspective. I've been potty training my twins which has been exceptionally challenging. Despite this, fear of failure has kept me getting up each morning and trying again. And again. "I'm teaching my girls perseverance, commitment and practice" I think. But at what cost? The household is more fraught; with higher tensions and more tears than normal. Would it be better for us all to accept that now isn't the time and to try again later, armed with the knowledge and experience that this first attempt has given us? I think so.

Except... the idea of failure still sits uncomfortably with me. For me, it's the black and white label that the word "failure" itself presents; worn like a badge of dishonour which opens my self-esteem up for further battering. So I set about finding an alternative. Thesaurus.com gives an amusing array of synonyms for the word "failure", including "lemon" and "turkey" but my favourite is "misadventure". That sounds much more fun to me. I could have a few misadventures!

So, no more failure in my world. Only adventures (and nappies for a little bit longer). Some adventures might be great, and some might be misadventures, but we will see and learn a lot along the way. Who's coming with me?

With love

Shizzle

A Moodscope member.