Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's Advice on the Benefits of Failure
I ran across this article (“Protect and Value the Truth”) about a wonderful talk by author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. Here are my favorite quotations from her that are given in the article. I separated them by added bullets:
It is hard to tell ourselves the truth about our failures, our fragilities, our uncertainties. It is hard to tell ourselves that maybe we haven’t done the best that we can. It is hard to tell ourselves the truth of our emotions, that maybe what we feel is hurt rather than anger, that maybe it is time to close the chapter of a relationship and walk away. And yet, when we do, we are the better off for it.
Be courageous enough to say ‘I don’t know … Ignorance acknowledged is an opportunity; ignorance denied is a closed door. And it takes courage to admit to the truth of what you do not know.
You cannot create anything of value without both self-doubt and self-belief. Without self-doubt, you become complacent; without self-belief, you cannot succeed.
Your story does not have to have a traditional arc.