The above is a quote from former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill. While he endured his share of failures, he knew these failures would eventually lead to success so he continued to press on with enthusiasm. When I hear a quote like this, I’m reminded of Thomas Edison’s experience associated with inventing the first commercially successful light bulb. He endured more than 3,000 failed experiments before he finally found a way that worked. In his own words,

“The electric light has caused me the greatest amount of study and has required the most elaborate experiments. I was never myself discouraged, or inclined to be hopeless of success. I cannot say the same for all my associates.” Then he went on to say, “Genius is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent perspiration.” The lesson here is that if you believe in what you’re doing, there’s no reason to become discouraged when things don’t initially work out as you had hoped.

Rather we need to take heart in the fact that each failed attempt takes us one step closer to the success we are looking for.