What do you do when you want something so bad that you can taste it?...
I'll bet your mouth waters at the thought of having juicy ripe cherries even though you know they have pits - depending on whether you like cherries in the first place. That's how it usually works, right? Practically everything that we want comes with pits as part of the package.
Whether it's that shiny new job (time clock) or that shiny new car (payments) or that bustling new city (traffic) or that beautiful new baby (sleepless nights) or that great big house (mortgage) or... The list goes on and on.
If we're lucky then we learn very early that life is a series of challenges - (1) either we're coming out of a challenge, (2) in the middle of a challenge, or (3) preparing to go into a challenge. This may seem like a bleak view of things, but it's quite the opposite.
If we're even luckier then we also learn that challenges arrive to help us build the strength that's necessary for our journey. Challenges make us dig deep down inside to find the promise that we were born with. Either we unlock that promise and grow or we allow challenges to us beat down.
I often think of people that I admire and what they've taught me. I try to model their examples to make myself better and to make a greater contribution. This summer I had quite an adventure all over the U.S. visiting places where many timeless leaders have been cast in stone. From the Lincoln Memorial to the King Memorial and all the way to the Statue of Liberty, I revisited the past and opened myself up to even greater possibilities for the future.
From museum to museum and book store to book store, I picked up bits and pieces of classic parchment as reminders of how far we've come and how far we have yet to go. I was awe struck by how many people there were who etched their blood, sweat, and signatures on my future and how many times things didn't work out as they had planned. Yet they just kept going. When one door closed, they didn't just open another door. They built altogether new structures!
That's because they knew something... They knew that there is no such thing as failure as long as one learns from their experiences. Even the act of refusing to learn is a lesson. Thus there is no such thing as failure. There are only challenges to be learned from.
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I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work.
Thomas A. Edison
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Voila! After 10,000 tries there was light.
The number 10,000 comes up often when talking about success or failure. Malcolm Gladwell reviews it in his book Outliers. Scientists have done metadata studies to dispute how Gladwell talks about it. Gladwell says that folks are oversimplifying when they talk about it. What all of them do agree on is that deliberate practice makes you better. Not perfect - just better. You've got to go deeper to go from Good To Great.
How do you get from good to great?
Listen to Jennifer Bricker's amazing story.
When someone tells you NO or you CAN'T or you SHOULDN'T - be grateful for it because they're helping you to build your muscles for whatever's next. Let each NO, CAN'T, SHOULDN'T be like a drop of water on a thirsty plant and let it REVIVE you.
What is failure? It's your choice. Choose well.
I'm looking forward to hearing from you on this topic. Join the conversation by adding your comments below.
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