Learn from Failure

Isaiah Moorehead 10/15/2015

Often times in life, one will learn from a failure or a mistake. There is one incident that can usually be fundamental to later success. I was only in ninth grade when I experienced one of the most memorable failures in my life. I was cut from my high school’s basketball team and could not tryout again until next season. Not only was I crushed and slightly humiliated, I also learned that nothing in life comes easy. I learned that if I really wanted to make the team, I had to work for it.

Before this experience, I was somewhat of an arrogant and cocky kid. I thought I didn’t have to contribute any effort in a task, whether it was difficult or straightforward. I acquired this attitude because of a couple of factors. These factors included, passing tests in school without even studying, beating tough levels in video games without trying and playing exceptionally well on sports teams without practicing. Not practicing is something I was never was able to get into and took for granted. It seemed tedious to me so I avoided it and saw it as a waste of time. To make matters worse, I even ridiculed other basketball players who practiced regularly by saying their skills would never improve from doing such simple routines.

My haughty attitude eventually came back to haunt me during my freshmen year of highschool. Tryouts were rapidly approaching for the Junior Varsity team. While other eager players were spending quality time in the gym to work out and exceed their skill level to secure a spot on the squad, I was home watching television and playing video games. At tryouts I looked around frantically as I noticed other players had improved talent wise since the last time I saw them play. Nevertheless, I completed tryouts with no doubt in my mind I made the team. My big head began to deflate as I looked at the team's final roster and saw that my name was not there. The list contained twelve basketball players who I truly, deep down, believed I was better than. And most of the kids whose names were on the list, are the same kids I clowned for practicing in the gym and working out.

This incident caused me to feel foolish and shameful. Ever since, I started to take objectives much more seriously. I knew that I was not going to be very successful by being lazy and conceited because life only gets harder as one gets older. Around the time of the next tryouts of my sophomore year, I was in the gym every other day practicing until my skills were superb. I was determined to make the team that year and sure enough, I did. By my junior year, following my same practice routine, I was a starter on the Varsity team. I learned that practice truly pays and hard work is the number one key to success.