“Success is the proper utilization of failure.” Unknown
If we are prepared to admit it to ourselves, then the only reason we don’t like failure is because of our ego. We want to impress other people with our skill and talent and ability.
But do we really have any right to boast on our innate skills and talents that we were born with? If a child prodigy sits down at a piano at the age of 4 and can quickly learn to play by ear, we are stunned and impressed, but why? The child has done nothing more than what comes absolutely natural to him – as natural as any of us mere mortals eventually learning to talk. Of course we encourage children learning to talk and we praise and coach, but we all eventually learn how to do it. It is nothing that 
impressive.
What is impressive is when an everyday, ordinary child who wants to run around and play games, or would rather sit and watch TV, either willing submits to the discipline of practice or convinces himself that practicing the piano is going to be worthwhile. When the novelty of playing piano is long past and that child still slogs through scales and rehearsal, well that is when we should be impressed. Even if the playing is not yet that good.
And what about when the child plays in public. Of course we would be blown away with a flawless performance, but that is the stuff of fairytales and movies. What happens far more often is that we see a child struggle through a piece, falter, stop, flush red with embarrassment at making a mistake, and then having the courage to carry on. That is what brings tears to our eyes and makes our hearts fill with pride.
We lose that courage as adults. We feel like we need to step out of the gate perfectly prepared. We do not want to make mistakes in front of people. We don’t want to do piano recitals with the children and get our notes wrong.
But how do we expect to learn without making mistakes? How can we experiment and see what will work and what won’t? We cannot be afraid of failure as if it is the enemy – we need to embrace it as a friend, a teacher guiding and coaching us through the various options to eventually discover the choices that work in this situation.
So until we fail, and learn from that failure, we really will never be able to reach the true heights of potential success. It is a challenge to fail well, and learn from it. Once we do, we are ready to excel – only then.
