My Unplanned Rendezvous With Failure.

“What made you think you can do this?”

“You better go and drive a cycle rickshaw instead.”

These were the comments from my instructor after the first day of my driving session.

The year was 2006, and the place was Dubai, where I was working at the time.

I desperately wanted to learn how to drive. It had been a long-cherished dream since I landed in the desert city.

Every time I saw someone my age driving around, the urge only grew stronger.

After working for a considerable time, I finally secured the money and permission from my organization to take driving lessons during the office hours.

I was excited to finally start with my journey & then I heard these remarks.

My instructor, a Pakistani guy, made these remarks after witnessing my lack of driving skills on the first day.

Looking back, I agree that I was horrible, but at that time, it felt really discouraging.

However, instead of giving up, I decided that no matter what, I was going to get my driving license in this country.

And so my training began.

To be honest, I was a slow learner and often received scoldings from my instructor.

But I persisted.

After completing the requisite number of training hours, the day of my driving test finally came.

The environment at test centre was far from encouraging. I saw people who had been driving for years in their home countries failing multiple times.

After waiting for some time, finally, my turn came.

I distinctly remember that besides the inspector (An Arabic guy in local dress), there were four of us inside the car.

One by one, everyone got the opportunity to drive according to the instructions.

The atmosphere inside was tense and intimidating.

When my turn came, I drove as instructed.

After returning to the test centre, I waited for the results.

After some time, the results were announced and guess what?

I failed.

Did I feel bad?

Absolutely. I felt miserable.

With heavy heart, I went back to my home.

My friends, colleagues, and relatives who knew about my test, asked for the result and once I shared the outcome they empathized and encouraged me.

I decided to try again and as per the process I paid the fee for additional classes to reappear for the test after a week.

After a week, I failed again.

And this became a pattern.

After every failed attempt, I would take additional classes for 1 week, appear for test, fail and repeat.

After 10 failed attempts, I stopped counting.

It became a topic of embarrassment for me. Each time I came back from the test, I was asked whether I passed and I would say NO.

Unable to take this any longer, I stopped informing people about my progress or test date.

Each failure was a blow to my confidence and a test of my perseverance.

I felt defeated, embarrassed, and questioned my abilities.

But with every failed attempt, I learned something valuable.

I learned the importance of patience, the need for preparation, and the strength to get back up after every fall.

Meanwhile, my instructor, the same guy who initially made fun of me, supported me a lot.

He helped me work on my mistakes.

I distinctly remember how he took me to a stretch where the speed limits were relaxed and pushed me to drive at 120-140 km/hr to break my fear.

He suggested taking classes near the test center to better familiarize myself with the location and road conditions, which helped/

Finally, after about 15 attempts (I am not sure as I stopped counting after 10), I passed the test and got the much coveted(at least for me) UAE driving license.

I wasn't sure whether I drove perfectly that day or they just got tired of seeing my face every week.

Either way, I got what I wanted, and I felt happy about it.

I wasn’t overjoyed, as that's rare for me—I’m more of a level-headed person.

More importantly, I felt a profound sense of accomplishment.

This journey taught me the importance of persistence and resilience.

It reinforced that if you decide not to give up, things do happen.

To everyone facing challenges and feeling disheartened, remember: every failure brings you one step closer to success.

Keep going, keep learning, and never give up.

If this made this sense to you and you were able to connect at some level, feel free to share your thoughts in comments.I would love to read them.

To your success..

Cheers !

Lalit Hundalani |Executive Coach| Life Coach | Motivational Speaker | Best-Selling Author

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