Failure vs. Quitting!
Do we often quit what we start? Do we fail more than we quit? Is quitting the same as failure? Why do we quit? Is failure a part of the process? These are questions I’ve been asking myself over the last several decades. Over the past ten years, I haven’t quit anything. While some relationships didn’t work out, I didn’t quit; rather, we simply weren’t compatible. Beyond those relationships, I continue to work towards several goals. I haven’t failed, even though I’m not yet where I want to be. Take a moment to evaluate yourself.
I typically set a goal and outline a few objectives to help me achieve it. One goal I started working on about a year and a half ago is to have a million dollars in cash or in the bank or a brokerage account by age 55. My retirement accounts don’t count towards this goal. I began this journey on January 11, 2023, my 50th birthday, with zero savings. I was buying a new home with a mortgage, despite not having a mortgage for the previous two years. I owned my condo outright and planned to use it as a source of monthly income, contributing about $15k annually towards my goal. However, I was forced to sell the condo. While I made a nice profit, I also got married in the summer of 2023 and had to pay for the wedding. As you can see, my plan hasn’t gone as expected. Despite these setbacks, I’m currently about 7% towards my goal. I need to be at 40% within the next 7 months to stay on pace.
The good news is that I have paid off my wedding, which I charged on credit cards that offered points and interest-free payments for a year. Over the next few months, I plan to double my savings and have some projects that could yield 1% gains toward my goal at a time. Despite the current challenges, I’m not quitting because my chances seem slim today. I believe I can achieve this goal because I have various opportunities to make money. By the way, I still travel and enjoy life. My consistent strategy is to save $1800-2400 a month. Although this won’t get me to a million in five years, it will provide a significant amount in two years, which can be used to generate more income. Even if I only have $300k at the end of five years, it’s feasible that I could double that amount in one year. As a small business owner with several business opportunities, I might not reach my goal, but I won’t quit, and I’ll keep pushing forward.
Have you ever failed a test you studied hard for? Attended all the classes, read all the materials, and studied diligently? I believe most failures come from a lack of effort. People often don’t put in the necessary time to succeed. Sports provide a prime example. Often, 10-30 teams compete for one championship. Is the champion the only winner? I don’t think so. Some say if you’re not the champion, you’re a loser. Consider Charles Barkley, Ken Griffey Jr., Dan Marino, and Marcel Dionne—they never won the big game in their careers. Were they failures? In situations where there can only be one winner, failure should be judged differently. In my opinion, anyone who works consistently towards their goals over a long period is a winner. Improvement signifies success, even if you’re not the champion. Being the best during a specific time doesn’t mean everyone else has failed.
Why do people quit? There are countless reasons and excuses. Many quit because it’s easy. Others quit because they don’t want it badly enough or aren’t willing to put in the work. Big goals require significant effort over a long period. You can’t have a Lamborghini goal with bus fare work effort. However, you can take the bus for 10 years, save the money you would spend on a car, and buy a Lamborghini in cash after this type of sacrifice. For many, though, that’s difficult and inconvenient.
One day at the bank, I saw an older man signing checks, one was for five figures. He left on an old ten-speed bike from the 1980s. The teller told me he was a multi-millionaire who didn’t own a car and lived in a modest ranch house. The lesson here is that wealthy people don’t need to prove their wealth, while poor and middle-class people often go into debt trying to appear rich. What does this have to do with failing and quitting? We often fail because we want the prize without going through the process. Once you achieve the prize through hard work, it becomes secondary, if even needed or wanted.