Through a series of true personal stories, experiences, and insights, Beyond Failure takes you on an emotionally filled journey from difficult beginnings, through reflections, to face your own setbacks, your own failures, and travel beyond to the realization that your own potential can be achieved and surpassed. Connie Lynne has painstakingly documented and dissected her encounters with failure, extracting the hidden lessons creating an invaluable resource regarding mistakes, setbacks and insecurities. Most of us wish we could improve things about ourselves. However, change is difficult, especially if we don't know what we want to change. Beyond Failure is a self-help reflection of possibilities filled with concise and thought-provoking, down to earth true stories and dissections about the universal affliction we call failure. From the Author: I have FELT LIKE A FAILURE most of my life. Even as a child, like many children, I felt alone in my humiliation. I didn't want to accept what, deep down, I knew to be true: That I was flawed. What exactly was I doing that kept me locked in my shameful prison? I needed to know, what I did not know. And thus, began my transformational journey. As I stumbled forward, my ignorance combined with my false assumptions and self-doubt prolonged my painful pursuit. I used the light of truth to guide me, however, this proved to be a challenge, as I will elaborate on throughout these pages. The reflection of light had to come from within me not from outside of me. I was scared. This was a new reality. My light was barely visible. I began questioning my self-imposed labels, transformation followed. What appeared to be my largest stumbling blocks were, in fact, my future stepping stones. Within the rubble of my failures I found what I was seeking. Failure was not what I thought! My journey brought me to a crossroads. I found myself at a junction where I could either continue in my futility, or change my paradigm. In my weakness, overwhelmed by the burden of my failures, I gave up. In the depths of my despair, shrouded in darkness, I surrendered. No longer could I pretend to know what I did not know. Everything around me, everything in my experience, was a reflection of what I had been focusing on. I had been the author of my own predicament. I had mistakenly smothered my own success. Freedom from failure lay before me. Liberated, I embraced my vulnerability and a miracle began to unfold. Within Beyond Failure are some of the more memorable lessons, insights, and understandings I have gained through close examination of my own personal setbacks.
About the Author: My name is Connie Lynne: My life began at thirty-five! The person I was before this transformational time is a distant memory. At the tender age of thirty five I found the courage to learn from failure, my own and other peoples (mostly my own). I packed up my bags, gathered up my children, stepped out of different forms of confinement...toward freedom. I took back ownership of my life! My reality: I'm not trying to impress anyone by exposing *my blunders, * mistakes and *setbacks; Amusing statement considering, in essence, I'm bragging about failure. Truth is, for years I was too embarrassed to admit that I had struggled through so many failures. My purpose in opening myself up to the perceived shame of failure is to take the Shame OUT of Failure. I would love to help shift the negative perception of failure to a more holistic interpretation of the natural educational process. My deepest desire is to encourage and uplift the struggling because, I have been there. My Philosophy about Failure/Success: Failure and Success work together, you cannot have one without the other. When I became aware of this bizarre synonymous relationship, I began to accept my imperfections. I began learning with a reassuring liberation. Simply Stated; when you unavoidably fail, just pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and continue forward; hold your head up high and appreciate that it is part of the learning process. Invitation: I would like to invite those who are willing to share their willowed wisdom to help transform our hypercritical and perfectionistic society. I am pleased, and honored to share what I have learned through my personal failures and would love to see others do the same. Let us not give in to the illusion that we are alone when we fall. My Dream: To encourage and celebrate our collective failures while remaining humble in our ignorance; knowing that failure alone cannot stop us. To openly share, without shame our lessons from past failures; contributing to a more transparent and healthier world view of so called failure. Together we will continue to grow through failure, creating a more relaxed ripple effect of growth and acceptance of our imperfections and struggles. We are not finished until we cross the finish line. Sincerely, Connie Lynne