I seem to fail so often, and as a result I get discouraged.

Ans : In this process you may fail not once or ten times, but a hundred or thousand times. Spiritual practice is going from bigger failures to smaller failures. They are progressively lesser. Do not be too fastidious; do not worry about unimportant aspects. At the same time, the fundamentals have to be kept; stick to the fundamentals as manifested in the small acts of life. Each aspirant should bear in mind that divine life is also to be lived in small things. If you are divine in small details, you can be divine in big things. If your yoga becomes practical in little things, then the greater achievement will come as a matter of course.
Heroism is needed in a man who has resolved to go forth and attain the Atmic experience. He does not care for discouragement at all. Then he will progress and he will get what he has set himself to get. Always carry on your practice till the end of your life. Abhyasa (sustained practice) and vairagya (discrimination) are the keynotes of sadhana.