Failure

fail·ure

noun

an act or instance of failing or proving unsuccessful; lack of success: His effort ended in failure. The campaign was a failure.

That’s the definition of failure according to  http://dictionary.reference.com/.

But I beileve the opposite. I beileve that failure isn’t even trying, not having the courage to do something. In Ignore Everybody by Hugh MacLeod, there is one of the keys to creativity that says, “Sing with your own voice” and it goes on to quote, “Picasso was a terrible colorist. Turner couldn’t paint human being worth a damn. Saul Steinburg’s formal drafting skills were appalling. T.S. Eliot had a full-time day job. Henry Miller was a wildly uneven writer. Bob Dylan can’t sing or play guitar.” And it goes to show you that the most successful people are NOT Perfect (even though I only know one of those people, but I’m only 16) The perfect is not as memorable as those who were imperfect.

I have a friend, (and yes, I do know your really reading this… so you better listen up, Maire) That had a mental breakdown after an audition for the talent. I wasn’t there personally, but my sister told me. And she was worried that she totally sucked at it, and she was just horrible at it. Well… she can just shush it. She’s a really good singer, and I know that she is terrified of complements, because then she thinks they expect her to do it again, perfect every single time. But that is not possible if you sound amazing every time, even if you mess up a few times. And I also know that while she was singing, she was thinking of her mother, who passed away early this year, and thought that made her worse. Are you kidding me? If anything, that makes you sound better. If you channel your pain into whatever you sing, write, draw, anything that’s possible, then it’s absolutely perfect. Demi Lovato sang her song “Skyscraper” with tears rolling down her eyes, because she’s in pain, and she sounds perfect.

As long as you try, even if it’s not your best, you can never, ever fail.