Sometimes, circumstances stinks. This happens.

Setbacks, obstacles, and a host of unpleasant and unexpected happenings just show up and ring the doorbell of your world. This is just a part of life and cannot be avoided.

However, you can turn any circumstance to your favor and take control of your life.

Tony Robbins teaches “Take control of your consistent emotions and begin to consciously and deliberately reshape your daily experience of life.”

And you can do this regardless of whether the circumstances are good or otherwise.

Zig Ziglar, author of “See You at the Top,” adds this: You cannot tailor-make the situations in life but you can tailor-make the attitudes to fit those situations.

What these success teachers offer is nothing less than the secret that gives you control of your life: Be in charge of what goes on in your head and heart.

Then you can take creative and decisive action to change your circumstances even if they stink. Know this and you will face anything with faith, resolve, and confidence.

Why? When you control what goes on inside, you can find a way to alter any situation outside.

And you are the only one in charge of what goes on inside. After all, it’s your head, is it not?

Here are two questions that banish fear of failure. Embrace them and discover the magic they hold and the promise they unlock.

What is the worst that can possibly happen if I fail?

If that happens, what can I learn that will make a positive difference next time?

The first question comes from Dr. Maxwell Maltz of “Psycho-Cybernetics” fame. He points out that most people use their imagination against themselves.

They worry about things that will likely never happen. However, they might happen.

So the next time the fear of failure creeps into your mind and casts a shadow over your enthusiasm, imagine that you try and the worst comes to pass. Unless you are a daredevil or a compulsive gambler, you will recover even if you fall flat on your face.

The second question is based on an observation from Zig Ziglar: If you learn from defeat, you haven’t really lost.

Even the worst debacle holds the meaning you give it. And if you learn from what some call a “failure,” it really wasn’t a defeat, except in terms of an out-dated meaning that you might have accepted in the past.

So neutralize fear of failure with these two magic questions. You may still miss the mark.

However, take a lot more shots. And you will hit the target with greater and greater accuracy.