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Dr. Harold

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LYH34: How to Fail Your Way to Success [PODCAST]

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Show Agenda

  • Featured Presentation: How to Fail Your Way to Success
  • Relationship Educator: Dr. Johnny and Lezlyn Parker
  • Life Coach: Rev Niki Brown
  • Lesson Principle: “If you’re too afraid to fail then you’re too comfortable to succeed.”

Featured Presentation

You can find the full blog post on this topic at haroldarnold.com/failtosuccess

Successful thinkers understand that as achievers they must fail their way to success. In this week’s podcast I discuss the ten steps to fail your way to success.

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Mother Nature’s Handiwork: The Perennial Quilt

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With patience and a prideful stitch,

With finest cloth in hand,

She sits to do her timeless task;

To weave a barren land.

 

With threads of blue and needle’s point,

She sews a seamless sky.

A touch of while silk here and there,

And clouds debut on high.

 

As spools of green roll to the floor,

And miles of grass abound,

She finds the tone to paint the seas;

and patch some lakes around.

 

With ne’er a though, she snares more thread,

A brilliant reel of gold,

And with some bits of silver string,

The Sun and Moon unfold.

 

by Dr. Harold Arnold (1990)

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How to Fail Your Way to Success

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In his first inaugural address, March 4, 1933, in the midst of the Great Depression President Franklin D. Roosevelt coined the famous quote “…the only thing we have to fear is…fear itself — nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance.” Powerful words at a time of national crisis—reminding us that fear is often our worst enemy in our efforts to reach our goals. One of the most prevalent fears is a fear of failure. While everyone has some trepidation about something. But, according to Psychology Today this fear of failure is so great that is overwhelms their motivation to succeed—often sabotaging their own chances of success and passionate pursuits. But, I would like to propose a paradigm shift—one in which failure is welcome—maybe even celebrated as the surest path to success.

We all fail. That is a fact of life.

  • Hall of fame baseball player, Ted Williams, is regarded as on of the greatest hitters in baseball history. But, he failed to get a hit nearly two-thirds of the time.
  • In 1995, author J. K Rowling completed her first Harry Potter novel only to have it rejected by all 12 publishing houses to which is was sent.
  • American inventor, Thomas Edison, is renown for the litany of failures that he experienced on his journey to discovering the optimal filament for the light bulb.

Yes. Failure is real. But, success can be on the other side of failure—if you keep going and apply learning along the way.

In fact, I would like to propose ten steps that can shift your mindset about failure—allowing you to experience that paragon of success in your own life.

Success is not about being the smartest, the prettiest, or the luckiest.

Rather, success is a commitment to consistency and persistency. And, you must be successful in your thinking before you can be successful in your doing.

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LYH33: Five Ways to Thrive in Your Cross-Cultural Marriage [PODCAST]

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Show Agenda

Featured Presentation

You can find the full blog post on this topic at haroldarnold.com/crossculturegrace

All couples struggle to integrate their personality differences, competing interests, varying emotional needs and divergent conflict resolution styles into one healthy marriage. For couples who layer distinct cultural backgrounds onto this mix, effective communication is even more critical.

GRACE: The Secret Sauce

Grace, modeled by Christ’s death on the cross, must be the bridge for the cross-cultural couple. Couples often miss each other in their efforts to cross the chasms of their differences. Graceful acts redeem their interaction – giving it purpose beyond their personal and cultural expectations.

I would like to offer G-R-A-C-E as a practical acrostic to help the cross-cultural couple surmount communication challenges. This five-step process emphasizes a mutual pursuit of grace in the form of God-inspired human action:

  • G: Give your spouse the benefit of the doubt.
  • R: Risk being honest
  • A: Accept your spouse’s feelings at face value
  • C: Complain without criticizing.
  • E: Embrace your differences.

I talk about G.R.A.C.E. as paramount for cross-cultural couples. And, it is. But, the reality is that these are also the keys for all couples.

Leave me a comment and let me know how you have successfully embraced G.R.A.C.E. in your marriage. What has made it difficult at times?

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