Measure of failure

I use to have certain standards of what I believed are successes, and what are failures. These standards have become lower and lower every year. I use to think if I didn't reach a certain level of success, then it would be the end of the world, and I would be absoutly crushed. But everytime I wouldn't reach that success, I would let myself be okay with the fact that I have failed. I think back on to all of this, and I ask myself if this is why I keep on failing over and over again, because my level of standards have become to low? Or did I let myself be okay with the situation that I was in because I knew that if I didn't, I wouldn't beable to handle it down the road. But I think I need to realize is, it's okay to not be perfect, and it's okay that there will always be bumps in the road along the way. However, I don't know why there are always more bumps in my road then anyone else I know. I have heard before that life only throws you what you can handle. Why does it have to be so hard then?