Power Tip: The Only Failure is the Failure to Try

The only failure is the failure to try.

When Thomas Edison was trying to get an electric light bulb to work, a reporter once asked him, “Why do you continue to waste time in this endeavor after failing 10,000 times?”

Edison’s reply demonstrates a key trait in all successful people. He said, “Sir, I have not failed at all. I have successfully found 10,000 ways that do not work, and each attempt brings me closer to finding what WILL work.”

The specific number of failed attempts changes depending on who’s quoting it, but the IDEA here is what’s important.

As long as you keep trying, you have not failed.

In more recent times, a famous hockey player is quoted to have said, “You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.”

Whether or not your efforts produce the results you want, the odds are a LOT better than if you sit on your butt and do nothing.