The Freedom to Fail

When you were growing up your mom or a teacher or some other well-meaning adult told you could grow up to be anything. You could be the president, a rock star, an astronaut, or a pro football player. 

It made sense at the time. You were (probably) born in America and this is the land of opportunity. You have the freedom to accomplish anything. However, you also have the freedom to fail.

Let’s face it. The odds of being elected president is pretty steep – 334,000,000 to 1 at current odds. There are a million pro musicians in America, but only room for 40 on the Top 40. Only 0.023% of high school football players ever make it to the NFL and the odds were much less if you were a skinny, 5’ 10” Tight End with below-average speed and blocked only 33% of downs. #me The odds of becoming an astronaut are also astronomically low, despite 11% of my generation stating that was the life goal in 5th grade.

Yes, you can be anything you want in America, but odds are you won’t. Only a few people have the stomach for ultimate success. Achieving your goals means hard work, dedication to a craft, relentless determination, and overcoming competition. A recent article by Par Chadra in Entrepreneur helped me bring this idea into perspective when he wrote that failure is America’s greatest asset.

In other words, I think it’s essential to tell kids they CAN be anything, but that’s only half the message. Success often comes after failure(s). We really need to change our collective mindset and let kids know it’s okay to fail. You have the freedom to fail. As long as you learn from the mistakes, and then course correct, you can have success. I have met many who feel entitled to success and when they don’t achieve it instantly, self-doubt and self-loathing take over. “I can’t win.” Then comes depression and anxiety. “I can’t deal with this today.” Then comes resignation and paranoia. “The world is out to get me.”

Whatever you choose to be when you “grow up,” you need to remember that success is a journey and failures are just speed bumps, not roadblocks. 

When I grow up, I’m going to be a great writer. I keep practicing, every week. Yet I’m reminded — with at least one email reply per week — that I am not. #keepfailing #keepworking #keepgoing #keepwriting #keepusinghashtags