You don’t realize it yet, but in a few short minutes you are going to know what makes a genius tick. First, a simple quiz…which genius made all of the following statements?

• “I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.”
• “Results! Why, man, I have gotten a lot of results. I know several thousand things that won’t work.”
• “Many of life’s failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.”
• “Our greatest weakness lies in giving up. The most certain way to succeed is always to try just one more time.”

Just imagine…what if you had that attitude? What amazing things could you accomplish in life?Maybe you’re like me. I hate making mistakes, and my natural inclination is to avoid them at all costs!

But playing it safe and avoiding mistakes is not the purpose of life. Where is the growth opportunity in just doing what you already know how to do?

Staying within our comfort zone means stagnation. And that’s not really living. Life is about growing and developing into our full potential. We cannot feel the exhilaration of personal growth unless we are willing to risk some discomfort and failure in the process.

Success and failure are both an integral part of life. Everything we try will not be successful, but we need to keep trying anyway. By doing so, we stretch our mental muscles.

It’s easy to keep a positive attitude when things are going great. Learning to stay positive and keep on trying when the going gets rough is more challenging. But it’s also more rewarding!

Every time you refuse to give up despite encountering some obstacle, your mental strength grows. That mental strength will help you tap into the wellspring of creativity and boundless joy within.

Did you figure out which genius said all those things about failure?

Thomas Edison, inventor extraordinaire!

But even Edison didn’t experience 100% success in all his ventures. Did you know that after inventing the electric light, phonograph, and motion pictures he had his worst failure ever? He spent ten years and millions of dollars researching methods of mining iron ore, yet in the end he failed to come up with a commercially viable process.

All that time and money…down the drain.

But Edison didn’t let the disappointment of that failure snuff out his creative genius. After the iron ore mining failure, Edison spent another ten years coming up with an alkaline battery that turned out to be the most profitable invention of his career!

Here’s the truth…failure is simply a stepping stone to success, if you choose to perceive it that way.

So the next time you fail at something, just chalk it up to experience and try again. Don’t give up, and success will surely come!

© Karen Wheeler Hall - All Rights Reserved