The Value of Trying…

In the book I’m reading, the quote below from Teddy Roosevelt was given and then dissected. Teddy Roosevelt was a master word-smith, and this particular quote is a great example of it.

“It is not the critic who counts: not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs and comes up short again and again, because there is no effort without error or shortcoming, but who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, who spends himself for a worthy cause; who, at the best, knows, in the end, the triumph of high achievement, and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who knew neither victory nor defeat.”  Teddy Roosevelt

This quote has been used by businessmen and sports stars for motivation, yet while it makes nice motivational poster, even that misses the point. The quote, while filled to the brim with action, isn’t about action itself–it is about character.

What worthy cause has been in the back of your mind…or on the back burner? Go try…it is worth it.

In the book I’m reading, the quote below from Teddy Roosevelt was given and then dissected. Teddy Roosevelt was a master word-smith, and this particular quote is a great example of it. “It is not the critic who counts: not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of…