大象传媒

I turn 45 this Saturday. According to psychologists and happiness experts, statistically, this is going to be the worst year of my life. Given it has some tough competition for "worst years" this isn't great news.

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Apparently I now realise that I am in all likelihood closer to my end than my beginning, - or as my son puts it: "heh Mummy you're closer to 60 than 30." Thanks Son! At a cellular level my body is in decline.

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And by 45 most of us have reached our career peak, or at least set the level for our life's trajectory. 听Yet-without wanting to tempt fate with too much buoyant defiance, I feel I have a good mantra for happiness, and it all boils down to this: "embrace failure".

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I told that to a packed hall of women at a conference last week and the confused looks on their faces was an amusing study! But once you embrace the idea of failure you set yourself free. The worst thing isn't failing, it is 'not trying'.

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Once you start something, once you find the courage to create some momentum, then refining it, improving it, excelling at it, become possible.听 When we began the magazine there were so many voices saying it couldn't be done. Once we did it there was the chance to make it better-which we did. I am just about to begin a monster sized education project. We will begin with small pilot. It may not work. Indeed, it may be a total flop. We won't know though unless we try. But it may also be awesome, or it may become awesome once we start, then improve and refine.

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So sure at 45 my best days may be behind me. Then again they may be ahead of me.

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Either way, I have learnt to accept the potential for failure, and to try anyway. Which is good because in Islam God rewards intentions and endeavour as opposed to our success.

I am not saying it is easy. It is far easier to be a critic from the sidelines; easy to carp on about things being or going wrong; easy to give up on ourselves before we begin. But once we embrace failure, we give ourselves the chance to succeed.