The F-Word

Traditionally we view failure as a negative, Finn Mullen argues its an important part of improvement in SUP and every fall, flop and flunk is a valuable part of the progression process.

- Finn Mullen

It’s windy, high tide and the backwash off the cliff is refracting with the swell to make for a confused sea. All information I would have known about if I’d been bothered to look at the beach before paddling out, but I hadn’t. My session time was limited and I was hungry to paddle, a perfect combination for failure. The sets were swinging thick and fast into the bay, standing up steeply on the sandbar and for five waves in succession I took the tricky drop and five times came up short. Between waves I was swaying like a drunken sailor standing on a sea of banana skins, trying to balance, succeeding in not. A crowd had gathered on the headland, the crashing waves against the cliff face drew their attention, the sight of a lone paddler constantly falling and failing to ride a single wave held their gaze; failure is compelling to watch. I was locked into a detrimental process and a growing cycle of negative thoughts heaped pressure on my poor performance. I needed to change the record but the needle was stuck. A Blessing

“The real blessing of failure is that it is the only thing that gives you the isolation and time to reinvent yourself. If you’re moving from success to success, you don’t have that daydreaming period that will allow you to come up with something new and unique.” Brad Pitt.