From The Blog Series… 365 Blogs To Finding Pinocchio A Home  

I know that making mistakes and failing is not a comfortable space to be in. I used to get extremely frustrated and depressed when things didn’t turn out the way I had planned. But a while ago, I was able and willing to see what failure really is and why it is something that I want to welcome into my daily life. Simply put, making mistakes and failing over and over again is the only way to succeed. As Ralph Waldo Emerson stated, “Men succeed when they realize that their failures are the preparation for their victories.”

I am starting to find success in every mistake and failure that comes about. I am also learning to not ponder over where it is I am supposed to start and just take an action, any action that, in some way, surrounds my creative vision. Simply starting something suddenly eliminates the fear of taking the risk because when I am in action, and not in my head, I am just doing something active, which then gets me clear on what the next action is that I need to take. But if I don’t start, I stay stuck and in confusion or go into my head fantasizing  about how great my life could be, if only.

And, since defeat and success are both temporary, I don’t need to judge either one of them. All I need to do is fail so I can succeed and then do the same thing all over again with each project or life experience that comes along my path. Believing in my creative vision also allows me to be calm and serene in the moments of failure, rather than going on that emotional rollercoaster of a ride that I have known oh so well. Part of the “trick” has been to remove words and phrases from my vocabulary like: can’t, if, maybe, I don’t know, I’m confused, I don’t have the time and I’m not sure, a little at a time, that stand in the way of my being able to achieve each goal leading to the big picture. Those words and phrases stop me from doing what needs to be done to create abundance in my life and the success I would like to achieve surrounding my career as an artist, writer and performer.

I want to share this video with Derek Sivers, an Entrepreneur, programmer, avid student of life sharing his experience surrounding, “Why you need to fail.” In short, he says that failure is required for learning, for keeping you in the growth mindset and for reminding you that everything is just an experiment. When you have 15 minutes, check it out. It will be well worth it:  Why You Need To Fail by Derek Sivers

So, the next time you get down and out because you didn’t quite achieve what you had thought you would the first time around, just remember that those who have succeeded took many falls before they saw the light:

Babe Ruth spent his childhood years in an orphanage and, as a baseball player, struck out 1,330 times…on his way to the Hall of FAME. Elvis Presley was banished from the Grand Ole Opry after one performance and told: “You ain’t going nowhere, son.” Oprah Winfrey was fired from her television reporter’s job and advised: “You’re not fit for TV.” “Gone with the Wind” was rejected 25 times before it was published. Cheese, pacemakers, Velcro, Ivory Soap, Chocolate chip cookies, stainless steel and Silly Putty were all invented by accident. (Read more about this in Steve Young’s book, “Great Failures of The Extremely Successful” .)

And now, check out a video I just put up from my latest gig at Bliss on Bliss Studio. It’s a song I wrote called, “Rain Fall Down On Me.” It’s a perfect fit for this blog.

So, with all this said, I look forward to the many more bumps in the road that lie ahead of me. It is in those bumps that I will find Pinocchio a home!