There’s a thin line between work and life — and how we manage our time, effort, and relationships on both sides is ultimately a reflection of who we are. It’s been four months since I wrote an article on What I Discovered About My Roadmap for Success and I felt the need to reassess my goal: to nurture all facets of myself.

I’ve taken intelligent risks in my personal and professional life and so far, some things have worked out and some haven’t. But, the most important lesson I’ve gained is that I’ve learned more about myself when things didn’t work out because it forced me to embrace vulnerability. Recognizing and acknowledging my weaknesses allowed me to uncover parts of myself that I wouldn’t have discovered had it not been for certain roadblocks.

Success feels good; it validates our hard work and celebrates our achievements. However, the reward is not always from our “wins” — more often than not, life’s accolades represent a culmination of our “losses”. Obstacles add depth; major setbacks can delay the process, but it forces us to reexamine the path we’re on in times of failure or disappointment. Sometimes, we don’t need to do anything, but pause and reflect.

When we’re under pressure we’re only presented with two choices: “Do I stop here?” or “Do I keep on going?”

When we embrace failure, we build endurance; our humility pulls us back to our core where we’re compelled to rethink our strategy and make optimal choices based on past experience — and the future we’re willing to fight for.

In work and life, we’re on a continuous search for something better — this is why we fail and this is why we succeed. When we struggle to accept settling for anything less than what we’ve gained or lost, it’s because we’re built to evolve. We never really know what’s going to happen next, we can only anticipate transitions and prepare for the possibilities ahead.