Failure is critical to Success

"If at first you don't succeed; try; try again."

"You learn more from a loss than from a win."

" O God, help me to win, but in thy wisdom if thou willest me not to win, then O God, make me a good loser."

"Bullshit. Bullshit. Bullshit."

Sayings such as the ones above have been around for an incredibly long time. They have existed to make people feel better, to help people bounce back, and to help us "try; try again." They have been holding us back for ever. Failure is critical to success. So why are we hiding from it?

Throughout life we are faced with challenges of every size, shape, type, importance and meaning. Like the stress that comes with them, challenges are interlaced in life and we must face them every day; regardless of how often we succeed or fail, win or lose. So why are we so obsessed with merely winning?

Life is not pass/fail. 100% or nothing might be a great motivator on the playing field, but it is not a plan for living. Doing the right thing, striving for justice and following our conscious is what is important. Whether or not we succeed is so unimportant that it shouldn't even matter. Our actions do not exist in isolation. Others see us, they are affected by us and they are influenced by us. Whether or not we achieve our goal is unimportant because we influence so many others in our attempt that we do achieve, we do succeed, we do "win."

Its not winning or losing. Its not succeeding or failing. Its not even trying. It's STRIVING.

But when we tell people "its ok, you learned more from losing," we hurt them as much as if we were to criticize, to attack or to put down. When you say such things all you say is "you DIDN'T succeed." All you say is "you WILL succeed next time." All you say is "success is the only thing worth striving for."

And when you say that, people start to fear trying.

Aspire to inspire, never to fame.