by John Philipp
Member since:
August 10, 2006

Thought~Byte No.174

October 20, 2009 11:44 PM EDT
views: 130 | rating: 10/10 (13 votes) | comments: 65

Thought~Byte No.174

 

 

 

Concept and words by John Philipp. Drawings by Phil Frank.

(The comments below are where the wisdom is found.)

 
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Comments: 65

John Philipp Oct 20, 2009, 11:44pm EDT
Mini Thought~Bytes (words without drawings) appear every day on my Twitter page. If you're on Tweeter please follow me and I'll follow you.
John Philipp Oct 20, 2009, 11:44pm EDT
Thought~Bytes are posted every Wednesday. To see all Thought~Bytes and get an email when new ones are posted, please join Thought~Bytes
Linda T. Oct 20, 2009, 11:51pm EDT
I don't have to practice failure it comes quite easily to me. Sometimes we set our standards too high and doom ourselves. I learned that by lowering the bar a bit I actually accomplished more and was winning after all.
Dianna Doles-Petry Oct 21, 2009, 12:02am EDT
Oh yes, I've had to lower the bar myself a time or two. I refuse to practice failure though, I like to think that anything I did not succeed at accomplishing simply brought me closer to finding out what I was really good at doing.
John Philipp Oct 21, 2009, 12:03am EDT
You always when when you do something new, even if it doesn't work out the way you wanted it too.

Remember how many failures you had when you started walking? Of course, it helped not even knowing about "failure" then.
Ron Amos Oct 21, 2009, 12:18am EDT
One thing about learning to shoot pool was the time spent figuring which shots led to me missing the point, as I figured out the bad one's I gradually eliminated them from my game.. Playing while drunk exposed more bad shots than playing sober did. Thinking is always a matter of integration and differentiation.. we integrate those things that go together then differentiate them from those things that don't go together. Then repeat the process at the next level of abstraction.
John Philipp Oct 21, 2009, 9:42am EDT
Good points, Ron, and we need lots of "at bats" to do that.

The earning to shoot pool analogy is very apt. Thanks.
Laurie C. Oct 21, 2009, 10:14am EDT
I'm with Linda -- failure follows me wherever I go. Some people tell me this means I will be great someday. In their dreams. ;)
John Philipp Oct 21, 2009, 1:16pm EDT
If you're learning from it, then it's working for you, Laurie.
Dianna Doles-Petry Oct 21, 2009, 12:03am EDT
You find the most thought provoking things to share. Now I'm going to be thinking about this for hours. (That's a good thing.)
John Philipp Oct 21, 2009, 12:04am EDT
A good thing and the whole point, Dianna. Enjoy your pondering.
Dianna Doles-Petry Oct 21, 2009, 12:38am EDT
It's not nice to ponder alone. Believe it or not, sometimes I fall asleep with something on my mind and wake up with the answer to my thoughts or a clear idea of my thoughts. I think I had too much caffeine today...I'm off to the land of nod.
~Sia McKye~ Oct 21, 2009, 1:33am EDT
I think anything you want to be good at will involve early failures until you get it right. I'm thinking that's part of the practicing.

Practicing until you get it right. And not giving up while practicing, lol! I think of all the things we have in life that wouldn't be here if the inventors *gave up* with the first failure...
John Philipp Oct 21, 2009, 9:43am EDT
Excellent points, Sia/

Imagine the dismay if the inventor had quit at "6-Up."
Bill W. Oct 22, 2009, 9:56am EDT
Actually, he did. It is still called Coca Cola. Seven-up offered just one more ounce.

Rest easy
Vinod Sailes Oct 21, 2009, 4:16am EDT
Well, I am miles away from even the ladder you are pointing to. 'Cause I do not mind falling in to the pit of failure to be able to struggle and come out of it a changed different man. I love that state. But where is that state situated?
John Philipp Oct 21, 2009, 9:44am EDT
Excellent question to ponder, Vinod.

I like the metaphor of the man climbing out of the pit of failure. Thanks.
Elizabeth R. Oct 21, 2009, 6:23am EDT
I keep trying but that ladder is out there. Instead of trying, I need to work harder.
John Philipp Oct 21, 2009, 9:45am EDT
Take another look, Elizabeth. That may be everyone else's ladder.
JOHN BECK Oct 21, 2009, 6:25am EDT
The Green Bay Packers, on the other hand, frequently do.
John Philipp Oct 21, 2009, 9:45am EDT
Yes, John. I will admit, some people seem to have made a profession of it. :)
MrsRoad Runner Oct 21, 2009, 8:16am EDT
Oh?
Say that over and over again and it might be the way it is :0)
John Philipp Oct 21, 2009, 9:46am EDT
Say it over and over again and it will be the way it is, Mrs. R.
Kushal Poddar Oct 21, 2009, 8:33am EDT
Ha ha. I don't have to try.

ruby love and red pearls
John Philipp Oct 21, 2009, 9:47am EDT
One has to be careful, Kushal. Failure is so easy, it's often addictive. (Seriously)
Sandi S. Oct 21, 2009, 11:02am EDT
Ooh, that says A LOT!
John Philipp Oct 21, 2009, 1:16pm EDT
Hopefully ...
Angela A. Oct 21, 2009, 1:17pm EDT
Because if they did...
The world would be sad all the time.
John Philipp Oct 21, 2009, 5:21pm EDT
Some say it would be better because only through failure does one find success.
Sandre M. Oct 21, 2009, 1:53pm EDT
I always taught my children that we learn from our failures, not from our successes. So long as you take the time to learn something from experiences, they're all good.
John Philipp Oct 21, 2009, 5:22pm EDT
Good thing to teach them, Sandre.

Actually we can learn a great deal from our successes as well, but people don't usually take the time.
Ruth J. Oct 21, 2009, 4:04pm EDT
I don't believe any of us have to practice failure because it's part of the way we learn. Some failures bring us to tears and some drive us closer to success. Abraham Lincoln was a prime example of using failure to move forward and eventually succeed. No one considers him as an example of failure.
John Philipp Oct 21, 2009, 5:23pm EDT
Good point, Ruth. We don't have to practice it. Maybe I should have said what we need to do is allow failures. It's trying to hard not to fail that keeps us from soaring.
Vivian A. Oct 21, 2009, 4:23pm EDT
Learning to fail well, is like learning to fall properly - we're all going to do it sometime, better to be prepared.
John Philipp Oct 21, 2009, 5:23pm EDT
Anticipating it. I like that aspect as well, Vivian.

Thanks.
Dennis Gilman Oct 21, 2009, 4:47pm EDT
No need for me to practice. I have become an expert without even trying.

They say that you learn from your failures. That's why I am now a genius!!!
John Philipp Oct 21, 2009, 5:24pm EDT
So you're our proof in the pudding, Dennis.

Thanks for being a role model.
K D. Oct 21, 2009, 6:43pm EDT
Practice failure? OOOOO I never want to start that!
John Philipp Oct 21, 2009, 7:26pm EDT
Some call it "learning," Karen, if that's a better word for you :)
K D. Oct 22, 2009, 9:54am EDT
I'm more comfortable with learning!
Sharon B. Oct 21, 2009, 9:55pm EDT
I have over 10,000 e-mails....so please bear with the generic comment... thanks for sharing
John Philipp Oct 21, 2009, 11:33pm EDT
Thank you, Sharon.

I think you maybe unclear on the concept of account settings for emails.
Heather ~of the Whippets~ M. Oct 21, 2009, 10:36pm EDT
It is often best when we can view things as "learning experiences"--difficult to do at times, but necessary for growth.
John Philipp Oct 21, 2009, 11:34pm EDT
Necessary for growth is a good build on this, Heather. Thanks.
blaine d. Oct 22, 2009, 2:08am EDT
if i practice , i will be in a creator!
John Philipp Oct 22, 2009, 1:09pm EDT
Correct-o-mondo, Bailne.
Lydia (part of the solution) Shelley Oct 22, 2009, 9:51am EDT
Does ANYONE deliberately PRACTICE failure? Well... maybe actors do.
John Philipp Oct 22, 2009, 1:10pm EDT
Lydia, to me trying things you know you will not suceced at initially is what I consider practicing failure.
Bill W. Oct 22, 2009, 10:03am EDT
Ooops! My limited cerebral capacity interprets this thusly -- " If you should fail, just keep trying the same thing until it becomes practice" I think way too many people practice failure when they should be practicing success. I prefer to learn from a failure then try something else until you get success, then practice that while you are trying yet another way to find a new success.

Rest easy
John Philipp Oct 22, 2009, 1:11pm EDT
Ok, Bill. Not suggesting you become a professional practitioner at this art.

See my above comment to Lydia.
Lionel LaVergne Oct 22, 2009, 3:46pm EDT
I have had such a small amount of failure in my life I am not that familiar with it. But, I'm very good at lying, LOL.
John Philipp Oct 22, 2009, 6:51pm EDT
LOL, Lionel. That will be a topic in future Bytes.
Marie J. R. Oct 22, 2009, 5:44pm EDT
you got that right my friend,,, failure can be repaired with conscience thought,,, some short sighted souls don't want the work it involves
Bless you,,,
John Philipp Oct 22, 2009, 6:52pm EDT
Another aspect to this Byte, Marie. "The work it involves."

Thanks.
LaRue B. Oct 22, 2009, 9:45pm EDT
That's because you don't have to practice for failure. It comes with the territory. Success is harder to obtain.
John Philipp Nov 3, 2009, 4:41pm EST
We might be arguing semantics, LaRue.

Maybe we could say you have to learn to accept failure,
Georgiana S. Oct 22, 2009, 10:40pm EDT
if you practice well enough it is just another speed bump in life
John Philipp Nov 3, 2009, 4:54pm EST
Good way to frame it, Georgiana. Thanks.
Jan S. Oct 22, 2009, 11:26pm EDT
Failures are the stepping stones to success. Once we can deal with failure, we can move on with more wisdom, better equipped to face adversity.
John Philipp Nov 3, 2009, 4:55pm EST
Definitely one aspect of this, Jan. Thanks.
Angel sent from God Secret Sisters Oct 22, 2009, 11:38pm EDT
Without failure their is no sucess!!
John Philipp Nov 3, 2009, 4:55pm EST
Almost guaranteed, Angel.
Larry W. Nov 3, 2009, 3:31pm EST
what a complicated word.
John Philipp Nov 3, 2009, 4:56pm EST
Agreed, Larry. One of the nice things about being complicated is look at the variety of thoughts it stimulated. All potential connecting points for each person's own learning.
Marie J. R. Nov 17, 2009, 5:02pm EST
no energy worth it,,,,

Bless you John,,,

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