Failure Or Success Takes Courage Either Way

by SusanANSYupdated on May 5, 2024March 8, 2022

OK, I love puzzle-solving – cryptograms especially! It takes courage (albeit a tiny bit admittedly) to come out and say I enjoy solving them every night — because I’m more than a little addicted to them … a lot more than is probably healthy! The other night I solved a great cryptogram puzzle by Anne Morrow Lindbergh (courtesy of Kappa Puzzles). It really resonated with me.

Here it is:

It takes as much courage to have tried and failed as it does to have tried and succeeded.
Anne Morrow Lindbergh

I thought, “How true.” You see, when you set out to succeed in whatever endeavor, a successful outcome isn’t guaranteed. Either it’s a failure, or a success. Whatever it took to get you to that point took the very same amount of mustered-up courage to try — either way.

If at First You Don’t Succeed …

… then try again, harder next time. Look, nobody plans to fail. We just fail to plan. And it’s a hard lesson to learn. It takes courage to continue. We need to keep on going. Like the Energizer bunny.

Where Does Courage Come From?

Whenever I’ve failed at something I’ll sit and pout and feel sorry for myself. I’ll get upset and wonder why I “can’t do it.” I’ll even say out loud, “I’m not doing this anymore.”

When that’s off my chest, something deep from inside reaches up and out of my inner being and gives me strength. An invisible light heady feeling of courage rises up and keeps me keepin’ on. The pity-party is over.

It Takes Courage to Carry On

That’s what I faced in my early days of sobriety. I failed the first time. I managed nine dry months. The lapse lasted a couple of years. I knew I had to try again. It takes courage to continue. You have to have belief in yourself. When that courage re-surfaced on January 17, 1998, I grabbed it with both hands and set off down the sober path again. And continue succeeding to this day, some 20+ years later.

If someone shared this post with you and you have courage to spare and you want to succeed, please give A New Sober You a try. It’s a 66-Day Program called “Life’s Better Sober”.

It may be just the push you need to quit your addiction to alcohol.

See “Life’s Better Sober” on Amazon; click the cover below! Thanks.

Regarding My Puzzle-Solving Fetish:

If YOU love puzzle-solving as much as I do, and you’re NOT afraid to admit it … then please check out Bored Boomers. They have large print (so you won’t squint) puzzle books for adults: Cryptograms, Word Search, and much more!