April 16, 2023 | Issue #64

1 Quote. 1 Reflection. 1 Question.

1 Quote.

"It is hard to fail, but it is worse never to have tried to succeed. In this life we get nothing save by effort."

From: Theodore Roosevelt

Source: The Strenuous Life Speech, 1899

1 Reflection.

At the beginning of the 20th century, the United States was booming with new industrial innovations because of new technologies, and it was becoming one of the leading economies in the world. However, at this time Congress was debating the annexation of the Philippines. Through this speech, Roosevelt urged Americans to accept the challenge of annexing the Philippines and to avoid the newfound complacency happening in America.

He knew it was a new endeavor for the young country but he thought not giving it a try would be a slap in the face to our founding fathers and show that Americans were scared to challenge themselves. 

A life well lived will be full of new challenges, and we can't overcome them without some failure. 

We can't master our job without feedback and criticism from managers. 

We can't learn a language without sounding like an idiot.

We can't get a black belt in jiu-jitsu without getting our asses kicked. 

We can't mindlessly ride a bike without falling off a few times.  

We can't have a successful marriage without having a few shitty first dates.

As Roosevelt mentions, failure is hard but is necessary. For if we don't try, we are left with one of life's worst feelings—regret.

1 Question.

What new challenge can you face this week?