Failure is a blessing when it pushes us out of a cushioned seat of self-satisfaction and forces us to do something useful.

If you carefully study your own life and those of achievers whom you admire, it is an absolute certainty you will discover that your greatest opportunities often occurred during times of adversity. It is only when faced with the possibility of failure that we are willing to deal with radical change and take the risks that lead to great success. When you experience temporary failure and you know that it is temporary, you can capitalize on the opportunities adversity always brings.

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First Thing Every Morning

If you had a bank that credited your account each morning with $86,400—with no balance carried from day to day—what would you do? Well, you do have such a bank...time.

Every morning it credits you with 86,400 seconds. Every night it rules off as "lost" whatever you have failed to use toward good purposes. It carries over no balances and allows no overdrafts. You can't hoard it, save it, store it, loan it or invest it. You can only use it—time.

Here's a story that drives the point home.

Arthur Berry was described by Time as "the slickest second-story man in the East," truly one of the most famous jewel thieves of all times. In his years of crime, he committed as many as 150 burglaries and stole jewels valued between $5 and $10 million. He seldom robbed from anyone not listed in the Social Register and often did his work in a tuxedo. On an occasion or two, when caught in the act of a crime by a victim, he charmed his way out of being reported to the police.

Like most people who engage in a life of crime, he was eventually caught, convicted and served 25 years in prison for his crimes. Following his release, he worked as a counterman in a roadside restaurant on the East Coast for $50 a week.

A newspaper reporter found him and interviewed him about his life. After telling about the thrilling episodes of his life he came to the conclusion of the interview saying, "I am not good at morals. But early in my life I was intelligent and clever, and I got along well with people. I think I could have made something of my life, but I didn't. So when you write the story of my life, when you tell people about all the burglaries, don't leave out the biggest one of all... Don't just tell them I robbed Jesse Livermore, the Wall Street baron or the cousin of the king of England. You tell them Arthur Berry robbed Arthur Berry."

Here are six terrific truths about time:

First: Nobody can manage time. But you can manage those things that take up your time.

Second: Time is expensive. As a matter of fact, 80 percent of our day is spent on those things or those people that only bring us two percent of our results.

Third: Time is perishable. It cannot be saved for later use.

Fourth: Time is measurable. Everybody has the same amount of time...pauper or king. It is not how much time you have; it is how much you use.

Fifth: Time is irreplaceable. We never make back time once it is gone.

Sixth: Time is a priority. You have enough time for anything in the world, so long as it ranks high enough among your priorities.

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What you've just read is an excerpt from First Thing Every Morning by Lewis Timberlake.

There always remains an opportunity to make a new start.

Though it may not seem so when you first encounter a serious blow, you can never lose two of the most important assets you have. These are the power of your mind and your freedom to use it. Once you have turned them to understanding what laid you low, you can begin forming new plans. You may not have the money you once had; you may lack the allies you had cultivated. But you still have the benefit of a universe that eventually rewards honest effort, as well as gaining the experience of mistakes you will never make again. Remember, no matter where you are now, whatever you can conceive and believe, you can achieve.

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Success requires no explanation; failure must be doctored with alibis.

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The Law of Success - Replace Fear with Faith by Napoleon Hill

The first problem we have is to replace fear with understanding and faith in ourselves. To do this, let us examine the mechanism of fear and its relation to bodily function.

First and foremost, let me tell you that temporary, fleeting fear is a very important and quite normal function of the human mind. The fleeting fear of being hit as we cross the street only serves to make us cautions - it protects our life - by momentarily forcing our attention on the problem of getting across safely. Thus, fear teaches us caution, but the fear is forgotten as soon as we have safely crossed.

The second important purpose of fear is to mobilize the body functions in defense of our life against a threatening situation. Consider for a moment early primitive man, sitting warmed by his fire in the gathering dusk, and enjoying a meal prepared during the day. Certainly, this early man was at peace with the world and the toils of the day were forgotten. At this moment let us say, a twig cracked in the forest - a sign of danger. An enemy was near.

Frequently fear is no longer a reaction to a specific danger, but a thoroughly learned habit of response, perhaps learned in early childhood. Although the need of this response has long since been lost, the pattern of thinking may persist, and now is defeating your quest for happiness and effective living. We fear most the unknown. Seek knowledge and understanding of your fear, and it will be replaced by faith. One must cultivate and nurture a positive mental attitude to achieve that smooth, effectively functioning mind-body you are seeking.

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The Law of Success - Eternal Change by Napoleon Hill

Strange also is the fact that only one thing is permanent in this universe—eternal change. Nothing remains exactly the same for even a second. Even the physical body in which we live changes completely with astonishing rapidity.

You can test these statements against your own experience.

When a person is struggling for recognition and to get a few dollars ahead, seldom will he find anyone to give him a needed lift. But once he makes the grade—and no longer needs help—people stand in line to offer him aid.

Through what I call the law of attraction, like attracts like in all circumstances. Success attracts greater success. Failure attracts more failure.

Throughout our lives we are the beneficiaries or victims of a swiftly flowing stream which carries us onward toward either success or failure.

The idea is to get on the “success beam” rather than on the “failure beam.”

How can you do this? Simple. The answer lies in adopting a positive mental attitude that will help you shape the course of your own destiny rather than drifting along at the mercy of life’s adversities.

Source: Miami Daily News, Summer, 1956

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