Failure is not an option...

Fail Until You Don’t: Fight. Grind. Repeat. – Bobby Bones – (Dey St)

“Failure is not an option” – often credited to Gene Kranz, NASA, Apollo 13 flight director; although in reality he never uttered that famous phrase.

While that phrase is and should be doctrine at places like NASA where mission critical actions can mean the difference between life and death; a lot has changed when it comes to the world view of failing. It has reached the point where failure has been elevated to being a pre-requisite for success. It has even reached a point where some business gurus are pushing folks to fail quickly and often.

I for one think this positive spin on failure is a bit of a stretch. Not that failure should be viewed as something terminal that you can never recover from, but because it is often a misnomer. While the recovering former radio host side of me finds a bit of humor in the fact that radio guy Bobby Bones is out with a self-help book, Fail Until You Don’t: Fight. Grind. Repeat, there is something to be said about the message he imparts.

While it may be packaged as a book that makes failure a bit more acceptable, what I think the real message is; is one of grit, determination and getting after it to do what it takes to be successful. I don’t see this as a book on failing, but more one of having the drive to overcome roadblocks, and being side-railed and having the drive to do whatever it takes to succeed.

Bones details more than a handful of setbacks and hardships that he has overcome in the course of his lifetime, right from his childhood and on through his pursuit of the profession of radio personality. The message here flies in the face of participation trophy generation. While failure is not an option isn’t necessarily about life or death, for Bones it’s about climbing the mountain and not letting anyone or anything stand in your way. That is a message that we certainly need to hear more of.