Failure helps us get one step closer to victory.

Yet sometimes it’s not advisable to keep trying to do something over and over. My great light bulb that went off in my head was that if a person has to try too hard to make something work, it might be time to give up trying.

This was evident when I had jobs in the gray flannel insurance field. It was also clear when I made the gnocchi recipe: it turned out just to be doughy and forgettable. I won’t attempt to try the gnocchi recipe again.

Failure is the cost of trying. I’m found of the Michael Jordan quote: “Don’t be afraid to fail. Be afraid not to try.”

A corollary is the idea that a lot of woman make mistakes with makeup. It can take us years to settle on the colors and shades that we look good in.

A person can also spend a lot of time trying to figure out the life path they want to go down. Taking a detour happens to a lot of us. I’m confident when I tell readers that the whole of life lies in seeing. Seeing the possibilities and being open to choosing what we think is the best one right now is the way to go.

A woman I met said most people make excuses for why they can’t do something. Thus they remain stuck because they’re not willing to try something new or to consider doing something that is a stretch.

Yet no one gets it right the first time they do something. My failure with the gnocchi recipe is a concrete example of taking a risk that didn’t work out. In life as with gnocchi I’m a firm fan of taking risks to grow as a person.

I say: risk change.

The famous Linda Ellerbee quote tells us:

“Change is one form of hope. To risk change is to believe in tomorrow.”

I say: believe.