To my readers, let me begin by saying, I’m sorry. I’m sorry I haven’t been keeping up on writing even though I committed last fall to write regularly. I especially felt bad when a player of mine mentioned that his younger sibling, who was a former student of mine, still checks regularly to see if I’ve posted anything new. To my former students, I’ll recommit to doing better in writing at least once a week for you guys. As I was thinking about what to write about today (believe me, I’ve been compiling a list of some great topics that I’m excited to talk about), I thought about a job interview that I had earlier this year and one of the questions that was posed to me. The question was, “What are your thoughts on the phrase failure is not an option?” Initially, I cringed at it. Here’s why. I have made it a point to be a student of life ever since I returned from the Philippines back in 2009. Even after I graduated from college...I’m not done with learning just because I have a degree. If you’re not continually learning every day, you’re coasting through life and the only way to coast is downwards towards failure and misery. But in my studies of life, I’ve learned from some incredible mentors and successful people that failure IS an option. Not only is it an option, but it’s necessary. So why do we say that failure is not an option? Well, let’s look at what ends up happening when someone takes on a project with the mentality of “failure is not an option.” What happens to them psychologically when they do fail? If they’re anything like me, it’ll be a long ordeal of beating themselves up for getting it wrong. I’ve seen too many people mentally and emotionally damaged because they beat themselves up because they failed. That’s good! ...The failing part...not the damaged emotionally and mentally part. If we can look at life as a learning opportunity, we’ll truly see that failing is one of the greatest teachers out there. So, does that mean go and make mistakes intentionally? Absolutely not. But if and when a mistake happens or you fall short of what is expected, don’t beat yourself up. You’ll survive the day, the week, the month, and the years to come. Pick yourself up, LEARN from the experience, and move on. So what would the proper phrase be? Well, when I was asked the question in the job interview I answered that I hate that phrase. I think it should be reworded to “Quitting is not an option.” Really, when you think about it, quitting is the only true failure in life. So don’t quit. If you didn’t reach that dream, that goal, that hope, and desire, what’s stopping you from still reaching or working towards it? It reminds me of the saying my mother used to say to me all the time growing up. “Quitters never win, and winners never quit.” Let me tell you the experience that I had when I was still in grade school that really solidified this concept to me. I love football. I played it all four years in high school (okay, I practiced all four years in high school then kept the bench warm on Friday nights...wait...we didn’t have benches), and during elementary and jr. high school I played flag football. Early on in my flag-football career my dad, who is an even bigger sports fan than me, told me that the only thing he cared about was that his son never quit in a game. So, I wanted to make sure I made my parents proud. I would, as the sports term goes, play till the whistle blows. This one particular game my fifth-grade year was really tough. We had a great team. I don’t think we ever had a losing season with this group of kids. But this one game was really, really hard. I don’t remember much of the game except this one run. We were working the ball down the field. We got probably within twenty yards of scoring a touchdown. Then, on one of the plays we ran a defender got to our quarterback. However, instead of going for the flags, the opposing player reached in, grabbed the ball, and ripped it out of our quarterback’s hands. The sideline erupted. Turnover! The kid took off down the field, unopposed, to score a touchdown. Again, I don’t remember much of this game except this one moment. I could see everyone on my team and how demoralized they felt. So much so that these ten to eleven-year-old boys didn’t even seem to bother to try and chase down the faster, adrenaline-rushed opponent. I was sure that I couldn’t catch him either. But I remembered what my parents taught me. “Quitters never win, and winners never quit.” I knew I may not catch him, but I wasn’t going to let everyone know that I gave him the touchdown. I chased him. I don’t remember much between the time I started to chase him and what happened next. I don’t know if I got a surge of energy and adrenaline or if he thought that he was in the clear and began to slow down. All I remember is that just a few yards away from the goal line...I dove. Grabbing flags in flag football is difficult enough. Try doing it while flying horizontally through the air. I landed, slid, and rolled...and stood with the kid’s flags in my hand just a few feet from the goal line. In the end, we held them up until fourth down when they finally scored. But I remember the excitement of not giving up, and the pride I felt when I heard parents on the sideline saying things like, “that was impressive how he never gave up.” That one experience was enough for me to understand that is meant by “Quitting is not an option.” There were times when I didn’t catch the other guy. There are constantly times in my life when I didn’t reach the final goal. But that lesson learned when I was ten years old has helped me to pick myself up and try again. I try it differently. I try it with more discipline. I try it at a different time. I change things up until I find the right way for me to accomplish the goal. What are your goals, dreams, desires? Have you failed? Did you give up after you failed? If you answered “no” to the giving up, then you haven’t failed. There’s just another lesson for you to learn before you reach that goal of success. Remember, the real winners in this life are not necessarily those who have the most success, wealth, or fame. The real winners are those who NEVER QUIT
0 Comments
|
Michael N. WoolleyThank for joining me! Here I simply share my thoughts and ideas about life. Most of it is just my personal opinion so take it as you will. If you'd like to read fun adventures, then check out my YA FANTASY/ADVENTURE tab. You can also support me on Patreon where you'll then get more creative writing content. Archives
January 2020
Categories |