Failure & regret

How has a failure, or apparent failure, set you up for later success? Do you have a favourite failure?

79 answers answered between 1910 and 2026

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On the record

Public figures who have answered a question like this elsewhere. Quoted from the source shown, not written for FLAPSS.

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Basketball player and author
I had self doubts when I was a freshman in high school. I was 14 years old and not very mature, and there were a few incidents in my freshman year. I learned in a very competitive environment. The high school environment that I played in was very intense, and I learned how to be stoic and go out and compete.
Recorded Academy of Achievement interviewer, Academy of Achievement interview, 1 January 1989 source ↗
Susan Butcher Dog musher; four-time winner of the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race
I feel that because I challenge myself so often, sometimes I will fail. This is, to me, the essence of competition — that there will be both winners and losers. But I have great faith in myself that I will turn this loss into something positive.
Recorded Academy of Achievement interview, 29 June 1991 source ↗
Mike Krzyzewski Basketball coach at Duke University, 1980-2022; winner of five NCAA championships
The world would say it was failure. But the difference was so small between us. They played great, but they lost.
Recorded Academy of Achievement interviewer, Academy of Achievement interview, Durham, North Carolina, 1 May 2001 source ↗
Sir Roger Bannister Middle-distance runner and neurologist; first man to run a mile in under four minutes
I had set my mind on winning the 1500-meter gold medal in Helsinki in 1952. ... And, it all came disastrously wrong when I came fourth instead of winning. ... Instead of retiring in order to devote myself to medicine, I decided to go on for another two years while I was still a student, working clinically in London, and I did that.
Recorded Academy of Achievement interview, 7 June 2002 source ↗
Peyton Manning American football quarterback
That's a real challenge and a real issue. Reading the statistics, they had a ranking of quarterbacks, and the statistic was the percentage of a touchdown drive after an interception. To me, that is a telling statistic. The guys that have a high percentage are the guys that have short memories. They talk about having amnesia as a quarterback. You better move along from it. It is hard to say you forget about it, because you want to learn from it. You want to address it. You can't just say it never happened.
Recorded Academy of Achievement interviewer, Academy of Achievement interview, Indianapolis, Indiana, 1 April 2007 source ↗
Li Na Chinese professional tennis player, 1999–2014
As hard as it's been to come to this decision, I am at peace with it. I have no regrets. I was not supposed to be here in the first place, remember? Not many people believed in my talent and my abilities, yet I found a way to persevere, to prove them (and sometimes myself!) wrong.
Recorded Open letter, 'My dear friends', Fox Sports Australia, 19 September 2014 source ↗
Cal Ripken Jr. Baseball player; holder of the record for consecutive games played
No. I mean if you fail 70 percent of the time, you had a great year. You're dealing with failure seven out of ten times as a hitter.
Recorded Academy of Achievement interviewer, Academy of Achievement interview, Washington, D.C., 18 August 2020 source ↗
Alex Honnold Rock climber; first person to free solo El Capitan
Yeah. I, I think an interesting thing with that is that like, is it even failure if you've learned from it and you've taken those lessons onto your next project or the next thing that you're working on? And it's like, that's not necessarily a failure. It's all just part of a long-term learning process.
Recorded Adam Grant, Re:Thinking with Adam Grant, TED, 20 September 2022 source ↗
Adam Peaty British swimmer; Olympic champion 2016 and 2021
When I lost that 100m final I spiralled. I went quite aggressive. It is an Adam I don't really recognise.
Recorded BBC Sport, 24 July 2024 source ↗

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