About failure...
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Join Date: Sep 2014
Location: Arizona, USA
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About failure...
“I’ve missed more than 9,000 shots in my career. I’ve lost almost 300 games. Twenty-six times I’ve been trusted to take the game-winning shot and missed. I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.” - Michael Jordan
I have attempted and failed to get sober either hundreds or thousands of times. I have seriously attempted (with the help of professionals or AA) probably 100 times. With each failure I felt like my odds were getting worse and worse. If AA didn’t work last time, why would it work this time? But the truth is that with every failure I was inching closer and closer to success. So glad I never gave up.
Like anything in life it is not how many times we fall, but how many times we get up. If you’re struggling to get right, don’t give up.
I have attempted and failed to get sober either hundreds or thousands of times. I have seriously attempted (with the help of professionals or AA) probably 100 times. With each failure I felt like my odds were getting worse and worse. If AA didn’t work last time, why would it work this time? But the truth is that with every failure I was inching closer and closer to success. So glad I never gave up.
Like anything in life it is not how many times we fall, but how many times we get up. If you’re struggling to get right, don’t give up.
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Join Date: Aug 2020
Posts: 75
Great quote! Thanks for sharing. Two that I have written down and keep close to me are:
“I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work.”
”Our greatest weakness lies in giving up. The most certain way to succeed is always to try just one more time.”
Edison
“I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work.”
”Our greatest weakness lies in giving up. The most certain way to succeed is always to try just one more time.”
Edison
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Join Date: Jul 2018
Posts: 2,279
My favourite quote in this is a classic from Homer Simpson who pokes fun at the attitude of a lot of people.
To Bart:
'Now son, you have tried and you failed. What have you learned? Never try'
It is the absurdity (but also the accuracy of how people think) that makes it funny
To Bart:
'Now son, you have tried and you failed. What have you learned? Never try'
It is the absurdity (but also the accuracy of how people think) that makes it funny
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Join Date: Jul 2010
Posts: 10,912
I've also experienced that both in my career and in my early quest for sobriety. And many other things in life. There are not many attempts though that I would regard as complete failure, meaning absolutely no silver lining and learning from it. In addition, I think we can succeed with the same method at a different time if we approach it differently, so success is largely an internal process and based on effort, IMO. In most endeavors I took on in my life so far, the biggest factor for success vs. failure has been my own effort, even when external factors interfere heavily. A method won't just work on its on, we need to make it work, and often tweak it many times. Obviously, there is a simple objective, practical end result when it comes to sobriety itself, but how we maintain and experience our sober life is really upon us.
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