Don’t Fear Mistakes – Fail Forward on the Homestead

Shalom family,

Let me tell you something right up front: if you step into this journey of homesteading and self-sufficiency, you are going to make mistakes. That’s not a maybe. That’s a guarantee.

I’ve lost animals. I’ve had gardens that just didn’t produce. I’ve wasted money on tools and equipment that I thought I needed but never really used. And every single one of those mistakes hurt in the moment. But here’s what I’ve learned: those mistakes are not the end of the story. They’re the beginning of wisdom.

Mistakes Are Teachers, Don’t Fear Mistakes

We live in a world where people are afraid to fail. Social media shows everybody’s highlight reel — the perfect gardens, the big harvests, the clean barns. What they don’t show are the failed crops, the dead animals, the projects that fell apart.

But here’s the truth: mistakes are your best teachers.

When a predator got into my coop one night, I learned how to build stronger fencing. When my goats broke out and ate something they shouldn’t, I learned how to secure their pen better. When a whole row of vegetables failed, I learned what my soil needed.

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Every failure gave me knowledge I carry forward. Without the mistake, I’d never have the wisdom.

Don’t Quit Too Early

The biggest mistake you can make is quitting after your first setback. Too many people do that. They buy some chickens, lose a few, and decide it’s not for them. Or they plant a garden, it fails, and they say, “I just don’t have a green thumb.”

That’s not the truth. The truth is, you just haven’t learned yet. Nobody walks onto a basketball court and shoots like Michael Jordan on day one. Nobody picks up a guitar and plays like Jimi Hendrix without years of practice. So why do we think homesteading should be any different?

The only real failure is quitting. Everything else is just a lesson.

Small Failures, Not Big Ones

Here’s some practical advice: start small so your failures are small.

If you’ve never raised animals before, don’t go buy 50 goats. Start with two or three. If you’ve never grown food before, don’t plant five acres. Start with a raised bed. Make your mistakes small so you can afford to learn from them.

Small failures build confidence. Big failures can crush you. Don’t overwhelm yourself. Build slowly.

Why Fear Holds People Back

Fear of mistakes keeps a lot of people from even starting. They think, “What if I mess up? What if I waste money? What if I can’t handle it?”

But let me flip that on you. What if you succeed? What if you grow food that feeds your family? What if you build something that changes your life?

You can’t let fear hold you back. Fear is a liar. Fear wants to keep you comfortable, stuck, dependent. But freedom comes when you push past fear, step into the unknown, and learn by doing.

Failing Forward Builds Strength

Every time you fail and get back up, you get stronger. You build resilience. You prove to yourself and to your family that you can keep going no matter what.

One day, you’ll look back on the mistakes that felt so big at the time and realize they were just stepping stones. The goat you lost. The garden that failed. The fence you had to rebuild. Each one of those moments shaped you into who you are.

Failing forward is how you grow into real self-sufficiency.

My Own Failures

Let me be transparent. When I first started, I thought I had it all figured out. I had read books, watched videos, and I was confident. Then reality hit.

• My first chickens died because I didn’t know how to protect them properly.

• I planted crops in the wrong season and watched them wither.

• I bought equipment I didn’t need and wasted money I couldn’t afford to waste.

Every single one of those things stung. But I stuck with it. And today, I’m feeding my family with food I raised. I’m teaching others how to start their own journeys. And none of that would’ve happened if I had quit when it got hard.

Practical Tips for Handling Mistakes

So how do you keep going when things go wrong? Here are some tips:

1. Expect failure. Don’t be shocked when it happens. Build it into the plan.

2. Learn from it. Ask, “What is this teaching me?” Write it down if you need to.

3. Adjust quickly. Don’t keep repeating the same mistake. Fix it and move on.

4. Celebrate progress. Even if it’s small. Even if you just learned what not to do — that’s progress.

5. Stay connected. Join communities, find mentors, and talk to others on the same path. You’ll see you’re not alone.

   
   

The Reward Makes It Worth It

Here’s why I keep going, even after all the mistakes: the reward is worth it.

When I sit down to a meal and know that everything on that plate came from my land, it feels incredible. When I see my kids learning these skills, I know I’m giving them something priceless.

The peace that comes from knowing you can provide for yourself is worth every failure along the way.

Final Word

So let me say it plain: don’t fear mistakes. You will fail. You will lose. You will waste. But every single time, you will learn. And if you keep going, you’ll win.

Homesteading is not about perfection. It’s about persistence. It’s about failing forward. It’s about building freedom, one lesson at a time.

So don’t let fear hold you back. Step in. Start small. Make mistakes. Learn. Grow. That’s how you build self-sufficiency.

Want to start the journey with us? That’s why we created the Set Apart Tribe , a community designed to help you start small, build skills, and grow into your own definition of self-sufficiency with support and accountability.

Membership Benefits:

• Free Tier 1 Facebook group- Be part of a like-minded community sharing, praying, and growing together in real-time.

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