zero360|music

Failure is an Option

Jan 18, 2010 ramblings

I was walking by a cube and noticed a sign stating “Failure is not an option.” At first I thought, wow, that’s dedication and determination. Later, however, I wondered, what does this person do? What do they create? Heck, if all I set out to do must succeed, I’m doomed! And how will I learn? What can I explore, how many chances to mold the clay do I get, can’t I ball it up and try again if the pot I spin really sucks?

I’d never write another song, or play another gig, shoot a photo, attempt to teach my kids, or try to be taught… I mean, really, failure is not an option? Obviously, the context here is not about being a screw up, but in the realm of creativity and how we do what we do for a living. If I don’t try I can’t fail… if I don’t stretch myself to be better at things I don’t know or yet do well, I won’t fail. Neither will I be fulfilled as an artist or just being.

So, at least for me, failure is an option.

“I am not discouraged, because every wrong attempt discarded is another step forward.” — Thomas Edison