You're a failure? Great!

“If at first you don’t succeed, try and try again,” right? Well, maybe. Success is a slippery concept and it is rarely black, white, or even a shade of grey. Evidence of this can be found in sayings such as “today’s success is tomorrow’s failure” and “don’t rest on your laurels”. Definitions aside, “success” is something that we all seek, whether a hermit chasing nirvana or an executive making a profit. Everybody has their eye on a prize.

Our hunger for success is so great that it feeds an entire “successory” industry. Tour the offices of any company and you will surely see inspirational posters featuring plants and animals in precarious situations, mugs emblazoned with encouraging mantras, and innumerable books all claiming to hold the secret of fiscal, interpersonal, or spiritual success. As far as I can tell, diligent practice and a little bit of luck is the only real “secret”. It would make for a short book but it may work as a poster.

But failure, now that’s a juicy topic. It is my assertion the word “failure” is bogus. The idea that we can fail has no real basis in Truth (capital “T” emphasized). Take learning to walk. A toddler isn’t failing every time he or she lands on their backside. Each attempt is providing valuable information that allows the body to generate the proper coordination, strength, and confidence that walking requires. Each “failed” attempt was a step towards “successful” walking. So does that not make them one and the same? Even the idea of some static end result, walking upright in this case, is an illusion. We continue to refine our ability to walk as we develop and eventually we discover that from walking comes running, jumping, and boogying.

The crucible of success requires that one be open to taking chances, risking disappointment, and experiencing failure. So, put down your Tony Robbins book, get out of your comfort zone, and have an epic fail!