I used to hate the saying “two steps forward, one step back.” It always seemed unfair that after putting in all the effort to move ahead, I’d suddenly be dragged back again—like some invisible force kept holding me back. That one step back used to feel like failure, and it could be enough to make me give up altogether. The setback would start small, like falling into a ditch, but it would easily spiral into a landslide.
This wasn’t easy to figure out, and it felt really scary sometimes. I had this pattern of trying and then quitting, convinced that certain things just weren’t for me. I’d tell myself, “I’m just not a tech person,” or “I’m not a numbers person,” or “Business terms are just beyond me.” The more I said it, the more I believed it, and I’d never move forward. I couldn’t grow if I refused to believe that I even had a chance.
After some time with self-development and reflection, I understood the process better. It’s about focusing on progress, not perfection. When I hit a setback, it doesn’t have to be the end—it’s just a small ditch. I can acknowledge where I am and make a choice. If I don’t pause and regain perspective, that ditch turns into a landslide, taking me further down. But when I do pause, I realize there’s usually a way forward that I hadn’t noticed before. Maybe someone’s reaching out a hand to help me, or there’s a step that I didn’t see because I was too busy spiraling.
Change isn’t about getting it all perfect; it’s about the small steps forward and learning to catch myself before I make things worse. When I manage my emotions and recognize the setback for what it is—a small ditch—I can keep going. Each time I do that, I build trust in myself. And every little lesson I learn, even when it feels insignificant, stacks up.
Managing setbacks is about resilience—learning to pause, to not let frustration or fear block out the possibilities that are still there. The small ditch doesn’t have to become a landslide. And sometimes, the step back might even reveal something important—a new way forward I wouldn’t have seen if I hadn’t paused to look around.
ACTION: Next time you face a setback, pause and look around. Is it a small ditch, or are you letting it become a landslide? Find one simple step to move forward—just one, no matter how small.
