Have you ever failed? I was asked this by someone recently. It seems like a superficial question until you think about a bit. Sure I have failed and I hope that I will continue to fail at times. The key is that you learn from you failures and your mistakes. I am convinced that if you are not trying new things and pushing the envelope then you are not getting better. When you do that failures and setbacks will occur. If you stay in your comfort zone and never take risks you will not progress. Failure can be very painful and uncomfortable but if you have sound core beliefs and a good support system then failure will only be an obstacle to overcome. I firmly believe that adversity creates opportunity. Much of the effect of adversity is how you react to it. If you let it defeat you then it will. Success can blinding, it can allow us to delude ourselves into thinking we are better than we are. Ultimately it is about putting failure and success into context and keeping perspective. I know I had two experiences in a row with the NY Mets and the Nike Oregon Project that shook my foundations. They certainly could not be considered great experiences and in many ways they were failures. The net effect of those two experiences was to grow and develop, to sharpen my core beliefs to find out who my real friends were and to pick up and move forward. The goal is to move forward and upward, don't be afraid to fail!
