Those who never failed never tried, and that’s the biggest failure of all.
There’s a guy who has climbed Mount Everest without a coat or gloves. Actually, he only wore some shorts.
Wim Hof is known as the Ice Man for being able to withstand cold temperatures for a long period of time, so it’s not surprising that he holds the record for taking the longest ice bath.
He’s done other life-threatening stunts.
When asked if he’s afraid of death, he replies: “I’m not afraid of death. I’m afraid of not living to the fullest.”
To live to the fullest, we have to try to the fullest.
Failure is a part of trying things just beyond our abilities.
If we’re stretching ourselves, then we will fail.
Failure is a good litmus test for whether we’re really trying or just pretending to try.
People often confuse “activity” with “trying.” They’ll make themselves seem busy or do nothing more than the easy work. Easy work won’t ever lead to big results. Big results takes hard work at things we’re not that great at.
No guitarist can become great by perfecting one chord. No figure skater can score a perfect 10 by only knowing one jump. No fighter wins the belt by only knowing how to throw a right hook.
Everyone who has reached greatness has reached beyond their capabilities to become great. And they’ve done so over and over.
To really try, we’ve got to really reach.
So, reach.
Failing without defeat is one key to winning more often.
Failing is based on a score, while defeat is based on an attitude towards failure.
A salesperson might be rejected by a potential customer. That’s a failure. But it’s up to them to decide if they’re defeated. A defeated salesperson will quit, while the winning salesperson will use the failure in a positive way. They’re not defeated.
Winners aren’t undefeated, but they aren’t able to be defeated.
We may fail, but that doesn’t mean we’ve lost.
Whether we win or lose is up to us.
So, win.
Would you like to help us shatter stereotypes about men?
Receive stories from The Good Men Project, delivered to your inbox daily or weekly.
—
Photo: Flickr/Cma Photographies