It’s happened to all of us at one point or another. You work really hard on something and the results are not what you were hoping for. Take that test for example. You know, the one that you spent hours upon hours studying for and you still made a D. Think about that time when you applied for a job. You know that you’re perfect for the job and you work hard to convince others that you’re the ideal candidate but then BOOM, you don’t get hired. Think about the time that you ran for an office, maybe student government or another organization. You spoke eloquently during debates, your campaign ads were on point and you did everything just right, and then you didn’t elected.

It’s frustrating. No, it’s infuriating.

It drives you absolutely crazy that even with all that work, all of those hours, all of that effort and you still get bad results. It makes you want to just say “f*** it” and throw in the towel because you did all of that work with nothing to show for it.

Stop. That thought right there. “All of that work for nothing.” That is where you’re wrong. Yes you stayed up late studying your heart out, yes you did everything right to get that job, yes you did everything you could to make sure things turned out how you wanted them to and yes you didn’t get the results that you wanted, but that doesn’t mean that you haven’t gained anything.

So you made a lousy grade. It has happened to the best of us. But hey, now you know what you need to do to make a better grade on the next test. Your study skills will improve.

So you didn’t get a job that you wanted. Don’t automatically blame yourself. The professional world is full of politics-you may have been perfect for the job and just not have been the right person. I know that it is frustrating, but that is how the world is sometimes. Through this experience, you will learn how to deal with frustration in a mature manner. It sucks but the more frustration you encounter, the better you become at handling it.

So you didn’t get elected. Through this process, you learned how to run a campaign and how to debate among other things.

Keep applying. Keep running.

Keep going.

I say this from a place of experience- when one opportunity falls through, take the time you need (within reason) to be upset but then get up and apply for something else. Perseverance will get you a lot further than you might think.

Your outlook influences your life more than you know. You have the power to turn any situation, no matter how sh*tty, into a positive. Sometimes the only positive that comes from a situation is that you learn or that you mature a little but hey, you learned something and you matured a little. That’s something!

Adopting an attitude of positivity will change your life and the lives of the people around you. Have you ever been around someone with a bad attitude or someone who is being pessimistic? Have you noticed how easy it is for their bad attitude to rub off on you or the people around you? A good attitude works the same way! You may not realize it at first, but people really appreciate someone with a good attitude.

So I leave you with this- keep going. Don’t throw in the towel. Adopt a positive outlook. You got this.