Understanding Failure
“I have not failed. I’ve just found 10.000 ways that won’t work.” Thomas A. Edison was a man who turned failed experiments into stepping stones towards monumental discoveries. His journey of inventing the light bulb was famously not a single stroke of genius but a series of over 1,000 unsuccessful attempts. In the spirit of Edison, let’s illuminate the often-overlooked splendour in the shadows of failure.
Sometimes, I wonder if Edison had an X account. His 999th tweet might have read, “Attempt 999 to create the light bulb: yet another interesting way it won’t work. Stay tuned!” The humour in his persistence underlines a vital lesson: failure isn’t the opposite of success; it’s a crucial part of it.
Thomas Edison is not the only person who has experienced transformation from his failed attempts. Before I put this piece on “The Bright Side of Failure,” I have written too many intended points on the sticky notes on my office table. I got bored and curious. I opened my browser and searched on Google for “How were sticky notes discovered?” To my greatest surprise, the invention of sticky notes was a mistake.
Spencer Silver, a scientist aiming to create a super-strong adhesive, invented the opposite: a low-tack, reusable, pressure-sensitive adhesive. This ‘failure’ gave birth to the Post-it Note, an invention that became incredibly useful, adorning office desks and computer monitors worldwide. Silver’s accidental invention is a cheerful reminder that sometimes the goalpost shifts in serendipitous ways, leading us to unexpected successes.
There are several other success stories that would lighten your failed attempts and give hope to your instantaneous failures. Finally, let’s consider the tale of a young cartoonist whose editor fired him because he “lacked imagination and had no good ideas.” This cartoonist was none other than Walt Disney. Fast forward several decades, and we find a realm of magic, dreams, and talking mice, all sprung from the mind that was once deemed unoriginal. Disney’s early career hiccup was a hidden blessing, propelling him to create a world-renowned empire of creativity.
So, what do these stories tell us? They whisper the age-old wisdom that failure is not the finale but often the prelude to something greater. The seeds of innovation, creativity, and resilience are sown in the mess, the missed marks, and the miscalculations. As Edison would have probably agreed, each failed attempt is a conversation with the unknown, revealing more about the mysteries we seek to unravel.
In our lives, we might not invent light bulbs, draw beloved characters, or accidentally invent office supplies. Yet, in our everyday failures—the botched presentations, the rejected proposals, the missed opportunities—there is a hidden melody of growth and learning. They are not just stumbling blocks but stepping stones, leading us to paths we might never have tread otherwise.
As you subsequently encounter failure, remember to wear it like a badge of honour, a testament to your courage to try, explore, and dream. After all, in the grand journey of life, the threads of failure often add depth, colour, and texture to our stories, making the eventual success all the more beautiful.
