Just think if these people would have quit! Would you have quit if you were them? They didn't see failure as the end, but an opportunity. One of the best examples of all is Christ. He virtually went through everything and was ridiculed and even killed. Just think He was PERFECT and many still thought he was just a man and denied his miracles. He now has everything! There was a plan for Him. He, like us, still have the opportunity to choose thanks to our great gift of free agency.
Everyone is special and has gifts. Just think of all the things we have been given and the potential each of us have. We can accomplish a lot of good if we just believe in ourselves and not focus on the negative or the failures.
It's awesome being a father and watching my kids grow up. My daughter Isabella has fallen many times but as we know kids just get right back up. I'm teaching my daughter Italian as well. She is learning great. She tries so hard to roll her R's and count to 10. I will help her and correct her and she does a great job. What is really humbling is that she doesn't cry, get mad, or get offended when I help her or correct her. This has helped me to quit being a victim when I fail or if someone seeks to help me.
intermission video.... FAIL VIDEO!
There are 3 major things that can help us capitalize on our failures. And they are:
1. Enthusiasm- This comes form the Greek root word of God within. We have to have faith. Isn't everything we do based on faith and hoping to get a certain outcome we seek. Before thinking you will fail before a test or how bad you suck at sales or how nervous you get before a game try, just try thinking positive. You can even find ways to make things fun.
My friend Kevin and I one summer did door to door sales. We had door after door shut on us. We had an idea we would make up names of the people's homes we knocked out. Some of the names we came up were Mr. and Mrs. Samsonite, Glasscocks, and more. We proceeded to do our sales pitch but in the end still failed. But man it was funny and we remember it to this day!
One of my companions and I on my LDS mission would come up with a vocabulary game to open up conversations with people on the buses in Italy. One of the words I had that we wanted to learn ended up being a cuss word haha. A pretty bad one too, and she wasn't happy I had asked! I still remember that do this day and it still makes me laugh. So lighten up and enjoy the process, because YOLO!!!
2. Fear. I have been studying an awesome salesperson names Grant Cardone who is from the dirty south. He was asked how to you avoid fear and overcome fear when you do sales. He says he doesn't he basically embraces it. He said if you don't fear then you aren't really doing what your supposed to or you aren't growing. I agree big time. Sometimes I do everything I can to avoid fear, but it comes down to what Wayne Gretzky said," You miss 100 percent of the shots you don't take." I'm sure he feared when massive dudes tried to lay him out on the hockey rink. You can't live in fear you have to embrace it and after you will see how much you have grown while in the refiner's fire!
3. Failing requires action.- I'm not saying seek to fail or not to prepare, or even to expect failure. What i'm saying is don't think failure is bad. When I first met my wife I kept calling her Grace but that was her hometown not her name. Good thing she is patient! Of course everyone wishes instant success without any trial or failure. Yet what kind of gratification is in that?! It's like getting a food stamp for doing nothing! And yes I realized everyone needs help along the way but in the end and at the judgment bar it's going to come down to what we did, not what we wanted others to do for us or how things may have gotten in our way. It's up to US! It's like expecting to be a doctor or get in the NFL without doing anything or going through a lot before reaching that point! We are given our free agency to act! To really choose between acting or being idol. I've noticed that when I want to be lazy I give into excuses and I give myself reasons not to act. Just think of how many excuses had to have entered Thomas Edison's head after 999 times of attempting to successfully create the light bulb. It's real. Faith or Fear? God wants us to be free and succeed. And Satan wants us to be a slave and to give up.
So in conclusion I just want us to think of what we want said of us at our funeral. Do we want to remembered for who and what we really are and what we have accomplished in life? Or do we want to be another average Joe? To be successful and happy we will fail and come up short sometimes. We have to be happy during the whole path. Not even when we may hit our goals or achievements either. Because happiness and action don't end there we keep going. If we waited to be happy when we get our degrees, hit our budgets. reach our athletic dreams then we really will be unhappy because you will need to just keep pushing after. Fans, coaches, and teammates expect Peyton Manning to be a great QB every single year and to get better each year! Not just reach 1 goal. So he and we must be happy along the way even if we come up short and even if we are asked to give more after we reach our goals. Here is a great video and link to watch and read about regrets and resolutions! And remember the words of Winston Churchill during a tough time during war, "Never, never, never, never, never give up!" Love you all!
