It’s that time of the year again. Societal activities within IBA have started to ramp up, with many already having begun their recruitment process. While anticipation and excitement permeate the air, it is important to remember that you may not end up getting the role you want. Failure is an integral part of life and learning to cope with it is just as essential as succeeding.
ALLOW YOURSELF TO FEEL
A commonly perpetuated myth is that burying emotions makes it easier to handle them. Well, that’s a bunch of baloney. For a short time, give yourself permission to vent. Go for a quick run, a boxing spree…anything to let it out of your system. Failure isn’t easy to handle even if it is related to societies.
REVIEW AND REFLECT
So, you’ve cried your heart out. Now, it’s time to regroup and evaluate. A little introspection never hurt anyone and could perhaps bolster your spirits for the future. However, do remember not to beat yourself up for past mistakes. Instead of thinking, “where did I go wrong?”, ask yourself “what could I have done better?”. Perspective matters and can make a world of difference in coping with failure.
LIGHTS. CAMERA. ACTION.
Everyone needs a plan, and so do you! Draw up a strategy to work on your self-identified flaws and stick to it diligently. The process will be difficult, no doubt, but Rome was not built in a day. There will be times when you may falter; when it may not seem worth it. But there will also be times when your efforts pay dividends; when you can see the light at the end of the tunnel. It is these times that you should focus on.
Perhaps the most important thing to remember, however, is that there’s always next year. You may be an aspiring freshman or an eager sophomore who’s disappointed at being rejected by your favorite society. All that effort has seemingly gone to waste. But do remember that you’re still young, and you do have time. So apply again and, if need be, again.
For as the saying goes, if at first, you don’t succeed, try, try again. It may be a cliché, but it is a tried (no pun intended) and tested one.
