Praise be to Allah, and may peace and blessings be upon the Messenger of Allah. To proceed:
Failure is a deficiency and something blameworthy, while success is perfection and something praiseworthy. A believer does not make worldly success his sole objective. Rather, he makes true success the attainment of Allah’s pleasure and Paradise. Allah تعالى says:
﴿So whoever is removed from the Fire and admitted into Paradise has certainly succeeded﴾ [Aal ‘Imran: 185].
Among the greatest motivations for a believer to achieve success are:
Seeking Allah’s pleasure and attaining success in the Hereafter: Allah has promised those who believe and do righteous deeds a good life in this world and a great reward in the Hereafter. He says: ﴿Whoever does righteousness, whether male or female, while he is a believer, We will surely grant him a good life﴾ [An-Nahl: 97].
Excellence in one’s work and exerting one’s utmost effort: A believer strives to develop his abilities and skills and is keen to perform his responsibilities in the best way possible.
Seeking Allah’s help while taking the necessary means: The Prophet ﷺ said: “Be keen on what benefits you, seek the help of Allah, and do not be helpless.” Narrated by Muslim. Happiness lies in exerting effort in what is beneficial, while relying upon Allah and seeking His guidance and success.
Not surrendering to helplessness and discouragement: When a person does all he can and then experiences something he dislikes, he should not open the door to fruitless regret and sorrow. Rather, he should say: “Allah has decreed, and whatever He wills, He does.”
Viewing failure as an experience from which one learns: The person who works is the one who may make mistakes and fail, whereas someone who does not work achieves neither success nor failure. A believer makes his failure a means of discovering weaknesses and shortcomings, then corrects them and returns to work with stronger determination.
Benefiting from the opportunity of repentance: A mistake or shortcoming is not the end of the road. Rather, it can become a reason to return to Allah, reform oneself, and start again. Regret that leads to repentance and righteous deeds may be better for a person than an act that causes him to become self-admiring and arrogant.
Through this approach, the believer overcomes obstacles. He does not allow failure to lead him to despair, nor does he allow success to lead him to arrogance. Rather, he continues working, seeks Allah’s help, learns from his mistakes, and is certain that true goodness lies in obeying Allah and attaining His pleasure.
Success requires willpower and determination, concern for what is beneficial, taking the necessary means, seeking Allah’s help, patience in the face of obstacles, and learning from mistakes. One of the greatest things that helps a person achieve this is knowing that the door of repentance remains open, and that missing out on something does not mean the end of the road.
And Allah تعالى knows best.