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Be a professional failure
As Seth Godin famously says, 'He who fails the most wins.'
Music thumps in the background, filling the front room of a middle-class suburban house with low frequency wubs and vibrations.
After another furious night of typing and designing, a guy wearing a grey polo with pulled-back, long black hair is closing in on the end of another night.
Clicking his way around a white keyboard, a google doc is open on a widescreen monitor in front of him.
Scribbled along the bottom margin of the page:
01 July, 2020
Today, this guy - let’s name him John - is feeling the pain of another mind-numbing, monotonous day.
Another day spent spinning his wheels. Life is kinda “full speed ahead” for john. Every morning he’s lasered in, training for triathlon; but when it comes to his career, everything always seems to fall short.
01 July, 2020
Today, I missed a workout, and my day has ultimately felt just a little bit off. Almost like my body was just anticipating and welcoming the activity. Instead, I’ve forced myself into this idea that “I can’t,” when that can’t be further from the future.
John obviously spends far too much time in his head - just to be clear. And yet - he still speaks an often unvoiced fear within ourselves.
This voice that constantly tries to make you believe that you aren’t capable of achieving something. Doubt is powerful like that.
I know that the small steps I take each day will amount to something bigger in time. Being patient takes a high level of discipline. What I feel most uncertain about is getting on my own two feet. Getting settled at a new job, being able to move into my own place. Begin a new chapter of life.
– Ah, yes – the horor and bliss of being an early twenty-something in 2020.
You see, John, sitting in his parent’s office space, is just trying to do his own thing. He’s trying his best to build an identity for himself. He’s trying his best to stay fit and stay creative.
He's trying his best. And his own brain is telling it’s not enough. What a stubborn young man.
In two months, I’m going to be an Ironman. In three months, I’m going to have my career back on track. In six months, I’m going to be out on my own. I better be the strongest haman that I can be in order to face those challenges head-on and be successful.
It is best to take the fear of outcomes and turn it to love – passion for the process.
On the opposite side of any fear, there is love. Fighting doubt, worry, and anxiety means falling in love with the tiny moments felt every day, and how they are a part of achieving a goal you set for yourself.
In the case of John, he’s going to be fine. And John sounds like you: you got this!
Whatever you’re trying to achieve, you can do it. Suffer for what you love, get lost in the process, and fight hard to reach a goal you set for yourself.
You’re going to miss workouts. You’re going to have a bad diet once in a while. You’re going to slip and fall. As long as we try our best and get back up, we will .
Keep trying. Keep failing. Be a professional failure. Try and fail as many times as you can. No matter what life throws our way, we get back up and try again.
45 Days till I cross the finish line. I’ve got this.
Connor Byrne is a coffee lover, endurance athlete, and digital creative based out of Michigan.
He is the founder of Condu Coaching, a nutrition consultancy, and the creator of I Will Not Quit, a podcast sharing stories about perseverance.
While attending Catholic Central High School, Connor was able to develop skills and interest in creative mediums. Djing at basketball games, taking photos at school soccer games, and creating posters for clubs and program covers for the football team were just the beginning of a long list of creative opportunities for Connor to foster his true interest: Creativity.
In anything that Connor has applied himself to, creativity was at the core of any successful outcome. On the soccer field, creativity helped come up with strategies to win the game. In founding an on-campus fraternity, creativity is what helped increase the exposure of the Phi Delta Theta organization to interested students.
During his most recent pursuit, completing a half-ironman triathlon, Connor is using creativity to help grow a community around health, wellness, and endurance sports on social media.
Connor has been an amateur writer (in private) for a couple of years. He has been a writer at connorbyrne.net since June 2020.