The London 2012 Olympics games was a very successful one for the IOC, the host, Great Britain and a great outing for the host of athletes who won medals at the event. The event witnessed the legendary performances of the likes of Usain Bolt, Mo Farah, Missy Franklin, and Michael Phelps, the duo of Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh Jennings amongst others. One cannot but mention the impressive performance of an American, Gabby Douglas and other young athletes from different parts of the world who did their nation proud at the Olympics. It is believed that the excellent performances of the medalist will spur the emergence of a generation of young people who are motivated to aim for Gold, not just at future Olympic events but in all their undertakings.

It is no news that the United States won the highest number of gold medals and indeed the highest number of medals at the just concluded Olympics while some countries had no single medal to show for their participation at the world event. No doubt, members of team US worked very hard to earn the topmost position on the medal table but really, participants from other countries that went home with no medal probably worked hard too (may be not as much as US) yet they have no single medal to show for their hard work. Although most successful people are hardworking, working hard does not necessarily translate to success. There is more to succeeding than sheer hard work. There are other factors that make a huge difference between hardworking people who succeed and those who end up failing in spite of having worked hard in a failed attempt to succeed. Knowledge is one of such key factors, and it is the most relevant to this discourse.

It is arguable, but from the perspective of someone who has lived all his life in a third world country, it is justifiable to postulate that life in America, unlike in some other parts of the world is not ordinarily structured for people to fail so it may take some conscious efforts, loads of omissions, shutting out helpful information, refusing or abusing the aids provided by the system and a strong albeit unconscious resolve to continue to do things wrong for one to lead a life of perpetual failure in the US. Notwithstanding the fact that the road to failure is, in my opinion, a long one, people have always found shortcuts to get there (drugs, addictions, crime, risky behaviors), that is why it may appear that in spite of the many available opportunities to live a successful life in the US, there are still so many people whose lives are epitomized by failure.

In the developing world where ostensibly the odds are against being successful, a lot of people work hard to beat the odds and succeed in life. However, there are still those who seeing that the road to success is an arduous one give up trying and find shortcuts to success only to end up in the abyss of failure. Regardless of one’s physical location, the state of the economy, political stability in one’s country of residence, people who are passionate about making something of their lives always make a head way at the end of the day. One way to subscribe to perpetual failure would be to blame others or the system for your failures even when they are somewhat responsible. The truth is, a lot of people would be pleased if you dedicate your success to them but no one is going to take credit for your failures

Perhaps one of the lessons one could garner from the sporting event is the fact that failure is not determined by genes neither does the rules of monarchical succession apply to success. Everyone has a relatively fair opportunity to choose between succeeding and failing regardless of their background, choosing to fail is an easier choice while pursuing success is a tough choice which is ultimately rewarding.

There are no precise rules on how to succeed, that is why most of the very many books on how to achieve success can be really confusing but courting failure is one sure way of becoming a failure. It is possible for one to follow all the tips for successful living and still not succeed, but engaging in any of the things that makes people fail is sure to bring failure to one’s door step.

Everyone aspiring to be successful at something must be interested in knowing what could bring about failure, understanding what it takes to fail is one of the most effective ways of avoiding failure. The first step in learning how to be a good employee, a good hubby, a good student, a good citizen is getting to know what it takes to be a bad one. Talk to someone who has failed once and you are sure to get few helpful tips that could spare you the experience.

Your many successes cannot make up for your critical failings. People who succeed in everything they do are regarded as successful until they fail in one area that matters and all their successes will lose relevance. It is easier becoming successful than sustaining the success, ask Usain Bolt what it took him to win two track gold medals at Beijing and repeat the same feat in London. Do not lose your head because of one success, you will need it more than ever to keep that success and build on it. Most successful people learned this the hard way. Don’t ever lose sight of your frailties!

As noted earlier, knowledge is key to earning acknowledgement in any human endeavor, and it is clearly one of the advantages the US team had over some other participants. They knew what it would take to win Olympic medals and they worked hard towards getting it. They were coached by men and women who had been there, those who have good understanding of the psychology of the games. There is no way the other equally hard working athletes who had no such privilege could beat them to the Gold. What you do not know that is relevant as opposed to what you know that is irrelevant is responsible for failure. What you do not know can hurt and haunt you.

Someone who will succeed will consistently work hard towards succeeding and someone who will end up failing must have consistently remained inconsistent in attempting to succeed. If you are not absolutely determined to succeed, you have made failure an option. The fear of failure is good enough to keep you from failing but it is not enough to move you beyond the realm of mediocrity

You are not ultimately defined by your failures; you are defined by what you make of them. If failure comes too easy for you, you might as well make a profession out of it, start a charity to help people cope with their failures, write a book about your failures, isn’t that what successful people do to maximize the gains of their success? Do everything you can to make something praise worthy out of your failure. Help others to avoid the pitfalls, get as many people as you can off the track that leads to failure and you might, by so doing, find yourself recording successes that can truly make your failures worth the experience.

The experience and exposure that comes with living as an immigrant in the US is an advantage that can win you gold medals outside the US. Your failed experiments are worth something, so make something of it.

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