The bright side of failures
Sahil Sharifdin Bhat
‘’Do not pray to fail but do not fear to fail and do not feel shy to stand up again after you fail’
A businessman was to attend a significant meeting in another city. He rushed in a car to the airport to catch his flight. The moment he entered the premises of the airport, the aero plane he was to board took off. He was unimaginably disappointed. He slapped his forehead saying, ”Today was the worst day of my life’’.
His meeting would start within an hour and the next flight to the city he was to go would take over four hours. He was deeply distressed at his failure to catch the flight on time. After a few minutes, there was breaking news on the media announcing that the aero plane which he failed to board crashed in the air and all the passengers on board lost their lives. When he heard the news, he was overjoyed and he shouted at the top of his voice saying, ” today was the happiest day of my life.”
Failure is not a curse; rather, it is a blessing in disguise. Failure is not the end of a story; rather, it is the beginning of a better story. Failure does not bring you to a dead end, rather, it is an opening to a more beautiful path.
Failure does not break you down; rather, it lifts you up with more energy and more enthusiasm. Failure does not make you alone; rather, it drives your fake friends and selfish relatives away from you. Failure does not expose your weakness; rather, it brings the best out in you. Failure is not a shut up call; rather, it is an invitation by the greater success. Failure is but success in progress.
The greatest international inspirations like Edison, Bill Gates, Tagore, Elon Musk etc have been through phenomenal failures. It is said that Thomas Alva Edison failed ten thousand times before he finally succeeded in inventing the electric bulb. The world famous billionaire, Bill Gates failed in completing his college education before he turned rich enough to be able to provide high-paid jobs to the very professors who had failed him in college.
Another world famous billionaire, Elon Musk failed to get a job at a company called Netscape Communication before he was able to create bigger companies than Netscape Communication. Rabindranath Tagore failed to complete his university education but succeeded, later on, in winning the Nobel Prize.
The holy prophet Muhammad (PBUH), in a sense, could not convince the people of Mecca to accept the religion of Islam and migrated to the city of Madina to spread it from there successfully. Michael Jordan, the greatest basketball champion of all time has said, ”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.” There are millions of examples of the famous emperors, kings, queens, leaders, artists, sportspersons, students, businessmen and others who have been through failures. Failure is a knowledge that makes you wiser and wisdom leads to true success. Failure is a good teacher. It motivates for deep learning. Let failure not stop you. Let it grow and develop you.
I know some people who failed multiple times at school in the tenth grade. Their classmates mocked them. It seemed then that their future was totally dark. To my surprise, they grew up to be successful businessmen and those who mocked them and passed school, college and university exams with flying colours are now employees of the same tenth grade failed people. Do not pay heed to the reactions of the people when you fail. Work harder and give them solid answers in future.
Once a cricketer was to score five runs in the last over of the match to win it. The crowd was very happy before the last over started because they trusted in the technique and ability of the cricketer. He missed the first ball. He missed the second ball and the crowd grew worried. He missed the third and the fourth balls and the crowd started using abusive language against him and his womenfolk. Since he was a real champion, he did not mind the abusive crowd.
He missed the fifth ball and some impatient spectators from the abusive crowd threw water bottles towards him. Some of the spectators left the stadium in anger. When the bowler came to deliver the last ball of the match, the veteran cricketer moved two steps forward like a leopard and hit the ball out of the stadium. In the twinkling of an eye, the violent spectators turned into die-hard fans again and chased the same cricketer to hug him. Failure sometimes teaches you the right meaning of success or it multiplies the sweetness of your success.
Muniba Mazari was an ordinary lady. Nobody knew her prior to the horrific accident that confined her to a wheelchair permanently. Her husband reportedly abandoned her. After the terrible accident and the unexpected divorce, her luck smiled on her and she gained fame in multiple areas, as an artist, activist, anchor, wheelchair model, singer and motivational speaker. She is known as the iron lady of Pakistan.
Many people became great writers and famous leaders in prisons. Many people found the truly loving spouses after they were rejected and dumped by the selfish and wicked people. Many people do well in life after failing in the field of formal education. Many thieves, rapists and smugglers turn into saints after losing some beloved person or meeting some tragedy.
Some people fail to become school teachers, work hard, qualify better exams and become university professors. Some people fail to become doctors, start doing business, build big hospitals, hire doctors and thus become the bosses of the doctors. Failures should not discourage you. They should make you think deeper, work harder and achieve something greater.
Believe that the brightest sun rises after the darkest night. Accept that the hottest desert welcomes the hardest rain. Remember that the hungriest people find any food tastiest. Bear in mind that those who fail worst value success most. Mind that the biggest failures make a person wisest, kindest and loveliest.
Memorise the words ”if winter comes, can spring be far behind.” Failures are failures only for cowards. They are life changing lessons for the brave and the bold people. It takes courage to smile after a failure and restart things. Cowards do not fail because they do not try.
Failures and successes are the landmarks of the journeys of heroes. They dare to fail again and again till they become role models for the averagely successful people. They are able to see well in tragedies and disasters. They think positively in the worst situations and circumstances. They believe firmly that failures do have the bright side.
It will be better to end this topic with the beautiful poem of William Edward Hickson:
Try Try Again
‘Tis a lesson you should heed,
Try, try again.
If at first, you don’t succeed,
Try, try again.
Then your courage should appear,
For if you will persevere,
You will conquer, never fear,
Try, try again.
Once or twice, though you should fail,
Try, try again.
(The author lives at Lethapora Pulwama. He has authored several books)
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