Skip to main content

“Failure is an event…and with rare exceptions, is not fatal.”

A thought by Seth Godin (2011-03-01) in his book, Poke the Box (p. 66). The Domino Project. Kindle Edition.

That is so important for us to realize.  So many think that failure is a person, it is them.  I know there are parents who have made the horrible mistake to say to one of their kids, “you are a failure” but they are wrong.  Failure is not a person but an event.

Now there is a cycle in this.  The parent who says that may feel that about themselves.  A parent, a teacher, coach, some adult told them that they were a failure when they were young and they have carried that with them all their life.  Now here is the problem for kids.  They believe what adults tell them.  Kids don’t have the ability yet to distinguish right from wrong and they believe the adult knows more than they do so they must be right.

I have dealt with so many adults as a pastor who believe that failure is a person and lived with the pain of that untruth.  Yes, failure is real but failure is an event.  I have failed many times but I am not a failure. 

John Maxwell has written a great book on failure called, Failing Forward.  Within every failure there is a lesson to be learned.  We don’t waste it; we learn from it, we become better prepared to be successful the next time.

Also it is not fatal.  For a perfectionist they think it is.  They get that first B or even A- and they know that their life is over.  But it isn’t.  Now if they have a parent whose worth is built around where their child goes to college or whose love is conditional then they can feel like failure is fatal but parents can be wrong.  Hopefully as an adult you can accept and love this unpleaseable parent but not take your worth from them.

Again failure is an event not a person and it is only fatal if you let it be.

What about you?

Comments

  1. SchattiAugust 13, 2011 at 10:32 AM

    They say the words fast times you do not think so, unfortunately you can not rewind back to life but as a video film. For the reason you have to repeatedly explain and tell the people against his real feelings.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Bill WilliamsAugust 13, 2011 at 2:39 PM

    you are right you can't go back but you can keep from repeating what they said. Also remember that God the Father loves you and believes in you. Keep repeating that instead of what they said!

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

“There’s a big difference between building a castle and building a kingdom.”

A thought by Bob Goff from his book, Everybody, Always: Becoming Love in a World Full of Setbacks and Difficult People ( p. 41). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition. (Click on the book title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.)   Have you ever built a sand castle or maybe a Lego castle?   Have you? Bob says, “We actually build castles all the time, out of our jobs and our families and the things we’ve purchased. Sometimes we even make them out of each other. Some of these castles are impressive too. Lots of people come to admire what we’ve built over the course of our lives and tell us what great castles we have. But Jesus told His friends we weren’t supposed to spend our lives building castles. He said He wanted us to build a kingdom, and there’s a big difference between building a castle and building a kingdom.” Bob goes on, “You see, castles have moats to keep creepy people out, but kingdoms have bridges to let everyone in. Castles have dungeons for people who ha...
Post a Comment
Read more

“When you understand that life is a test, you realize that nothing is insignificant in your life.”

A thought by Rick Warren, (2012-10-23) from his book, The Purpose Driven Life: What on Earth Am I Here For? (Purpose Driven Life, The) (p. 57). Zondervan. Kindle Edition. To realize that from God’s perspective life is a test goes a long way in determining how you handle your life.   It is important to see that in testing your character is both developed and revealed.   Rick goes on to say that “even the smallest incident has significance for your character development. Every day is an important day, and every second is a growth opportunity to deepen your character, to demonstrate love, or to depend on God.” So there is a God purpose behind each situation in your life.   Even the bad ones are there to strengthen you and develop you.   You see those bad situations are really good ones because they are there for your good. I start each day with a reminder that God is good.   Not every situation that is going to come in my day is good but because G...
Post a Comment
Read more

“What areas of my personality, background, and physical appearance am I struggling to accept?”

A thought by Rick Warren, (2012-10-23) from his book, The Purpose Driven Life: What on Earth Am I Here For? (Purpose Driven Life, The) (p. 35). Zondervan. Kindle Edition. Rick posed this question at the end of his chapter, You Are Not an Accident.   In this chapter he deals with the fact that God created you the way you are with a purpose.   In other words you are not an accident.   I am also reading the Apostle John’s view of Jesus and what He said and did while He was here on earth.   In the beginning of Chapter 9 there is a story about a blind man.   And the disciples who were with Him asked Him a good question, “Who sinned, this man or his parents that he was born blind? ”   Have you ever asked the same thing about something in you that you don’t like?   Like that characteristic is a curse or something.   Society has set a standard that is not a standard of God.   Remember, He created you and you are not an accident. Je...
Post a Comment
Read more