I Hope You Struggle And Fail

24 replies
At first glance, that may seem like a odd thing to say. However
I sincerely hope that you do struggle and fail. Why? Because
you will learn something that is literally priceless in the process.
As Napoleon Hill Said:

"Every adversity, every failure, and every heartache
carries with it the seed of an equal or greater
benefit."

In my experience (especially dealing with Schizophrenia) that
has been remarkably true.

Every time you face a setback or failure¾and you overcome it
by learning the lesson it contains¾you build your self-esteem,
self-confidence, and your character. The greater the struggle,
the greater the success and the more you will appreciate it.

In all truth I wouldn't want being a successful Entrepreneur to
be easy. On the contrary I want it to be challenging and
something that I can be proud of. As Thomas J. Watson
(Founder, IBM) said:

"Would you like me to give you a formula for
success? It's quite simple, really: Double your
rate of failure."

Many people think that failure is the enemy of success.
However it isn't at all. It's something that teaches you how to
succeed. Many times¾and as it applies to business¾that
lesson it teaches is literally priceless. Don't let fear of failure
hold you back, learn something from it that will make you more
successful.

All of the most important things I've learned in life (including
rejuvenating my relationship with God, deepening my
compassion and empathy, and being more appreciative and
grateful) have been a direct result of my struggle/battle with
Schizophrenia. And because I have learned so much, I
wouldn't change my experiences for the World. As Benjamin
Disraeli said:

"There is no education like adversity."

You will also build courage from overcoming setback, failure,
and adversity. Something that will help you will all aspects of
your life and something that many people don't experience.

So go out with confidence knowing that nothing can stop you
form accomplishing your Entrepreneurial (and life) ambitions.
And that you will learn many great things through the process
of succeeding.

Good luck.
: )
#fail #hope #struggle
  • Profile picture of the author jazbo
    Great thread title. As a copywriter it pulled me in, even though I knew it was going to be something about growing from failing.
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  • Profile picture of the author Trey Morgan
    I love this post.


    This is the stuff that people don't want to hear, but it is the absolute truth.


    I like what you said here:


    "Would you like me to give you a formula for
    success? It's quite simple, really: Double your
    rate of failure."


    I agree that the formula to success is to embrace the possibility of failure and actually go towards it. The idea is to get to a point where you've failed so much that you end up stumbling across a way to succeed. How amazing is that?


    Imagine if you failed so much that you got to a point where you couldn't fail anymore because you understood exactly what you need to do to succeed. Would you rather fail your way to success, or stay in your comfort zone and never experience what it is to overcome adversity and succeed?


    You have to embrace fear and uncertainty and jump on the rollercoaster. I don't care how scary a rollercoaster is, if you continue to ride the roller-coaster over and over again, eventually that fear will diminish and it will turn into confidence. Now you can predict what is going to happen each time you ride the roller coaster and it is no longer scary. Now you can truly enjoy it and even get a greater perspective of the experience.


    Success is simply overcoming the odds and turning them into your favor. Stop trying to avoid the possibility of failure and understand that in order to succeed you must accept the good and the bad.
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    • Profile picture of the author Jonathan 2.0
      Thanks guys. : ) I'm happy some of you found my post helpful.

      And special thanks for the contribution Trey. I agree that the more you do something you're afraid of, the more that fear lessens.

      However something to remember is that there is no courage without fear. As Nelson Mandela said: "I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear."

      Or as Susan Jeffers said:

      "Feel the fear and do it anyway!"
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  • Profile picture of the author Believe In You
    Dare you say that failing is an option. Nonono --- never emboss your mindset with limiting beliefs, instead you oughta RELOAD the mind with powerful commands that implant deep within.
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  • Profile picture of the author Odahh
    i am picky ..

    there are areas in life to grow ..you need to risk plent of failure ..and then there is stuff that will kill you ,,

    there is a difference between calculated risk and wrecklessness

    if you are learning a new skill there is plenty of room to learn from your failures and the failurees of others ..

    if you are skydiving you don't want to jump without a reserve ..nor do you want the person who packed either to have packed it wrong ..

    you can make a lot of mistakes and failure in cooking but undercooking store bough mas produced meat ..can be very bad
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  • Profile picture of the author Odahh
    the key here ..as with..how do you define your success ..you have to also get a good grasp on what failure is ..

    a venture capitalist..spread their investment out over dozens of business investments a year knowing 80 percent will fail and lose money..the rest will return enough to turn a profit..and every few years you might get a big win ..

    then their are people who build a business sell it.. and put it all in the next business and fail then lose everything..including the house the wife and whatever
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    • Profile picture of the author DenniseTan
      This is a great thread. Thanks for sharing this.
      A lot of people are afraid of failing. But IMO, we learn from our mistakes and the next time something happens to us twice, we'll be wiser.
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  • Profile picture of the author Odahh
    i don't know if it's a quote by anyone.. but i think when it come to fear..

    a good qute would be if it doesn't scare you it is probably not worth doing ..
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  • Profile picture of the author Brendon Brackin
    This is a post I ran across this last weekend by Com Mirza that talks about this very thing, it's a little long but 100% worth the 3 minute read. He did such a good job talking about the pain that I haven't been able to stop thinking about this, and I've been reading it every day since I saw it. This perspective is awesome. I hope you all get as much out of it as I do
    https://www.facebook.com/com.mirza/p...nf&pnref=story
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  • Profile picture of the author SmartTim
    Great post, only people who have failed many times, get success. As they review their failures, mistakes and make sure that they don't make the same mistakes again!
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  • Profile picture of the author gvidass
    I agree 100% But I would like to say, is it really failure? Yes it's a big word, it describes unsuccessful try, and it makes easy to undurstand it. But for some people word - "fail" might look like bad and scary word, some even might be very afraid to feel failure by themselves.

    I would say it's one of the best fings - to fail, that can happen, while you try to create or accomplish something. Because it's part of learning process, if you fail - that means you learned something.

    I really love to discuss on such topics
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  • Profile picture of the author Synnuh
    "Experience is what happens when you didn't get what you wanted."

    Fail hard, and fail often ;D A+
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  • Profile picture of the author Brendon Brackin
    I like calling them experiments. As long as I don't let them go on too long. Read the signs, keep awareness of what's going on, and don't be afraid to change things up if they aren't working
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    • Profile picture of the author Jonathan 2.0
      Originally Posted by Brendon Brackin View Post

      I like calling them experiments.
      Nice. : ) That's pretty much the approach that Thomas Edison (see "Think And Grow Rich") took.
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      • Profile picture of the author Gandolfo85
        I also conducted many experiments in my life with several failures as well but I don't know if I gained so much in terms of self-confidence and self-esteem for everyone of them.

        What I mean is that:
        -yes, I learned a massive amount of lessons along the way which are quite impossible to learn if not experimented LIVE;
        -no, self-esteem and confidence takes a certain period of time to be digested and transformed in something positive. So, if you fail before that phases end, you'll have an harder time
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        • Profile picture of the author Jonathan 2.0
          Originally Posted by Gandolfo85;

          So, if you fail before that phases end, you'll have an harder time.
          Interesting point. Thanks.

          (IMO) it's the hard times (including overcoming low self-esteem) that really build true Character.

          It's a wonderful feeling to know that no matter what happens in life, you'll be successful. And all that is required for that feeling/belief is that you never give up when the going gets tough.
          : )
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          "Each problem has hidden in it an opportunity so powerful that it literally dwarfs the problem. The greatest success stories were created by people who recognized a problem and turned it into an opportunity."―Joseph Sugarman
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          • Profile picture of the author Odahh
            Originally Posted by Jonathan 2.0 View Post

            Interesting point. Thanks.

            (IMO) it's the hard times (including overcoming low self-esteem) that really build true Character.

            It's a wonderful feeling to know that no matter what happens in life, you'll be successful. And all that is required for that feeling/belief is that you never give up when the going gets tough.
            : )
            self esteem ans self confidence ..and this isn't the fragile self esteem ..from the everyone gets a trophy mindset ..or the wide range of first world mental problems in youth who have been protected from failure and harsh realities of life ..

            self confidence and self esteem ,, are built on going through failures and learning to deal with them.. or preparing in advance with some expectation of the possibility of things going wrong ,

            to get a pilots license and to renew it again ..i believe when there person testing you gets you up in the air ..they simulate and engine failure ,,so before you fly you learn how to crash a plane or what to do when things go wrong ..
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            • Profile picture of the author Jonathan 2.0
              Originally Posted by Odahh View Post

              self confidence and self esteem ,,. are built on going through failures and learning to deal with them.
              Yes. Good point.
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  • Profile picture of the author Sir Eliot Dundee
    I was just warming up and now I'm coming.
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  • Profile picture of the author mentat47
    This is one of my favorite quotes I read for failure:

    ''I didn't fail i just found 1000 ways that didn't work!'' - Nikola Tesla

    So, keep trying, because you will never know when you gonna find the right way.
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    • Profile picture of the author Odahh
      Originally Posted by mentat47 View Post

      This is one of my favorite quotes I read for failure:

      ''I didn't fail i just found 1000 ways that didn't work!'' - Nikola Tesla

      So, keep trying, because you will never know when you gonna find the right way.

      funny that sound like the quote from edison about the light bulb
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  • Profile picture of the author allanrsm
    This is so true that failure is an essential part of the learning process, especially when the goals we try to achieve are substantially higher than what the masses are looking to accomplish! This is also something that society conditions us to be very afraid of and reject as being unacceptable!

    From my experiences I have only started to learn real lessons, lessons and education that does not come with a certificate but with results that provide quality to my life, which I can use to attain all the abundance and important things in life.

    Great article and thank you for the contribution!
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    • Profile picture of the author ElGuapo
      I want to echo the comment on the great thread title. There's often a little bit too much 'woo' on this forum for my liking, but this is right up my street.

      Of course, the great advocate for pain was Nietzsche. He hit upon the idea that the level of suffering we endure runs parallel to the amount of joy we can experience. It might take a year of agony to train for a marathon, but you'll earn an elation upon finishing that few others will experience.

      For me, that is the difference between those who succeed and those who fail: a determination to overcome the struggle. It's too easy to cower, to make excuses for not wanting to run the gauntlet that stands between you and your goal.

      I find it's an incredibly simple and useful way of categorising people. You don't have to be raised with the insight - indeed, I'm sure most come to the understanding after reflecting on their own failures. Some get it, most do not. It's easy to spot the difference and determine who you will work with.
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  • Profile picture of the author RoadCEO
    great post and review and reminder .. ive read think and grow rich a few times and found another one of Neapolitan Hills book in the thrift store it was printed in the 50's as i remember... great sources of wisdom
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