I have failed many times in life, I have made many mistakes, I have lost games, I’ve lost jobs, I’ve lost friends and I am a better person because of it.  How can I be a better person because of it? Because every time I have failed I have learned something.

“I’ve missed more than 9000 shots in my career. I’ve lost almost 300 games. 26 times, I’ve been trusted to take the game-winning shot and missed. I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life.  And that is why I succeed.” – Michael Jordan

I feel that I am stronger physically and mentally than most because I have put myself in many mentally, physically and emotionally challenging situations and win or lose I have come out a better, stronger, tougher and better prepared than before.  If you never take chances or never venture outside your comfort zone you will never grow, never develop or never reach your full potential in life.

So what separates the winners from the losers?  It’s the fact that every successful person in sports, business, life have failed at some point and more often than not they have failed many times before having success.  Just think of how many dropped balls, bad business deals, lost elections, missed shots, lost games, crappy products, lost money some of the most successful and accomplished people in the world have been through over their life.

The biggest difference successful people have over the average person is despite the loss, rejection or failure they got up and kept going and going until they reach their goal.

Heres the bottom line, in life you will fail you will get knocked down; the question is do you have the drive, the courage and the balls to get up and keep going or will you settle for 2nd place, for mediocrity, an easy out or just OK?  Know what you want and get after it, take your hits, but keep going.

 

Some Successful People who Failed and Kept Going

Babe Ruth: You probably know Babe Ruth because of his home run record (714 during his career), but along with all those home runs came a pretty hefty amount of strikeouts as well (1,330 in all). In fact, for decades he held the record for strikeouts. When asked about this he simply said, “Every strike brings me closer to the next home run.”

Henry Ford: While Ford is today known for his innovative assembly line and American-made cars, he wasn’t an instant success. In fact, his early businesses failed and left him broke five times before he founded the successful Ford Motor Company.

Stephen King: The first book by this author, the iconic thriller Carrie, received 30 rejections, finally causing King to give up and throw it in the trash. His wife fished it out and encouraged him to resubmit it, and the rest is history, with King now having hundreds of books published the distinction of being one of the best-selling authors of all time.

Steven Spielberg: While today Spielberg’s name is synonymous with big budget, he was rejected from the University of Southern California School of Theater, Film and Television three times. He eventually attended school at another location, only to drop out to become a director before finishing. Thirty-five years after starting his degree, Spielberg returned to school in 2002 to finally complete his work and earn his BA.

Michael Jordan: Most people wouldn’t believe that a man often lauded as the best basketball player of all time was actually cut from his high school basketball team. Luckily, Jordan didn’t let this setback stop him from playing the game and he has stated, “I have missed more than 9,000 shots in my career. I have lost almost 300 games. On 26 occasions I have been entrusted to take the game winning shot, and I missed. I have failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.”

Abraham Lincoln: While today he is remembered as one of the greatest leaders of our nation, Lincoln’s life wasn’t so easy. In his youth he went to war a captain and returned a private (if you’re not familiar with military ranks, just know that private is as low as it goes.) Lincoln didn’t stop failing there, however. He started numerous failed business and was defeated in numerous runs he made for public office.

I will leave you with this motivating video.

Lets Get Going.