Yesterday (today) I wrote (write) my last article for the failure series. I felt it appropriate as I had a significant fail that day.

Like you, I have pet peeves or small things that profoundly irritate me.
Like you, I wish people would not do things that irritate me.
Like you, I wish people would do what I say.

I woke up in the best of moods: the sun was out, the wind calming, and I felt a cool breeze. Indeed, in my mind, I was "blessed and highly favored." How could this day get any worse? I live with my sister.

My sister, in the mornings, is not always sunshine and rainbows. I am. I am the annoying person that's up at 4 AM and feels everyone "should" feel as happy as me!

You know those people, right? My sister wishes I would tone it down a notch. Out of respect for her, I probably could. However, this morning, I did not.

My sister asked me, "What do you mean you're blessed and highly favored?" and I forgot what I said, but it was along the lines that I'm alive and grateful to be walking on earth. My sister said, "okay, whatever."

I hate whatever.

Suddenly, the mood when from candy cane dreams to scorched earth. In seconds. I let my sister know how I felt about her word choice and asked her never to use it again. Enter failure.

My failure was to think I could control the actions of another. I can't! I cannot ask my sister, or any other human, to avoid saying something for my comfort and convenience. Life doesn't work that way. Instead, I need to take personal accountability.

Taking accountability for how I let the world impact me led to my freedom. Today, I learned I could not ask my sister not to use "whatever." Instead, I decided to take the step to desensitize myself to the word. I even encouraged her to use it as much as she could!

My sister and I, fortunately, have a fantastic relationship. We're best of friends. I'm glad I could have a conversation with her to share what I learned. She was happy to know that she was okay, just as she was. She was pleased to learn I was making changes within myself. We had a great day.

Failure is only "failure" when you choose not to learn.

Learn through personal accountability.
Change your perception.
Change the dialogue in your mind.