Turn Your Failure into Success

Nicole Gunn • April 30, 2021

If you think you have never failed at something you are either lying to yourself or you haven’t really tried anything beyond your comfort zone. Sometimes you need to take risks – and with risk comes the chance of failure.

Making mistakes is part of life and it is your mistakes that will help you grow as a person. When things don’t go to plan, take the opportunity to reflect on what you did so that you can do better next time.

The number one rule is to take responsibility – own your mistakes. Don’t play the blame game “it was this person’s fault that this happened”. Look at your actions – what did you do, or say, or what did you not do or say? Learn the lessons for next time.

When I was working as a manager in retail, I took a risk. I left my permanent position for a casual role as a resourcer in recruitment in the hope that it would eventually lead to a better career. Now let’s break that down - I left a full-time high-paying retail job for a lower-paying casual job. Many of my friends said I was crazy.

One day, I was let go from this role on the spot with no warning. The joys of being a casual!

“Great,” I thought. “Now what do I do?”. I reflected:

Did I do something wrong?

What could I have done better?

What are the positives I could take from this?

One thing I got from that position was more experience, for which I am thankful. If I hadn’t taken the risk, left my permanent role, put my recruitment “L” plates on and gained some experience, I wouldn’t have that extra skillset that people2people were looking for. Sometimes one door needs to close so you can open the door on a new opportunity.

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In business since 2002 in Australia, NZ, and the United Kingdom, people2people is an award-winning recruitment agency with people at our heart. With over 12 offices, we specialise in accounting and finance, business support, education, executive, government, HR, legal, marketing and digital, property, sales, supply chain, and technology sectors. As the proud recipients of the 2024 Outstanding Large Agency and Excellence in Candidate Care Awards, we are dedicated to helping businesses achieve success through a people-first approach.

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