Failing

Failing sucks.


Especially when the thing that fails is something you have created.  Why? because its a part of you, its something you have invested time, thought, and care into.  there's emotion involved.


But when it comes to creativity, to art, its a balance.   If you never fail, you never really try to succeed. What I mean by that is this- when you fail in something artistic, it gives you a drive to push harder, to beat the block that is keeping you from your finished work.


Let's use an example from film.  Alfred Hitchcock made the movie The Man Who Knew Too Much in 1934.  It got great reception, however- twenty-two years later, in 1956, Hitchcock remade the film.  He said the first film was "the work of a talentedamateur and the second was made by a professional".

Hitchcock felt like he had failed.  The business and concrete person would say "The film made money, it did its job."  The creator says, "We can make this better."

This brings us to another aspect of failure- point of view.  Hitchcock believed he had failed.  If you put the films side by side- they both would be classified as 'classic Hitchcock'.  Many people actually prefer the original.  But the point of view of the creator, Hitchcock, was that the film had much more potential.

Failing sucks, but as creators, we should look at failures as not a wall that we can't get around, but as an opportunity to learn from and grow in.  If you are looking to be a better guitar player, you are going to fail at certain riffs, until you practice them.


That doesn't mean failing won't hurt.  Failure still sucks.  No one says "Hooray! I failed!"  But next time you fail- just remember that all artists fail, and that something great could come of it.  It will push you towards success.