When I was in middle school, I did something really embarrassing.

As most middle schoolers are, I was addicted to my phone. I couldn’t be away from it for more than two seconds, and even that would’ve been pushing it. So one day, I had to go to the bathroom and, rather than leaving my phone outside, I decided to take it in with me.

Now, here’s where I’ll give you some of my best advice free of charge:

Don’t text and pee.

One second I was texting; next thing I knew, my phone was swimming around the toilet.

Without flinching, I plunged my hand into the toilet and grabbed my phone out. Thankfully, it still worked but maybe it wasn’t the most sanitary decision.

Now, I know you might be thinking, ‘Alex, why are you telling me this?’

I promise there’s a point.

Oftentimes, in our lives, it’s a whole lot easier to avoid the mess. To find a detour around the discomfort. To skip past our pain.

However, I believe everything we want in life is on the other side of fear. The full life we desire requires going through our mess rather than finding the quickest shortcut.

Failure isn’t something to fear. It’s something to learn from.

Experiencing discomfort doesn’t mean something is wrong with you. It simply means you’re human.

With love,