Most success springs from an obstacle or failure. I became a

Host: The soft glow of the afternoon light filtered through the window, casting a warm light over the room. The world outside moved at its usual pace, but inside, there was a quiet, reflective stillness. Jack sat in his chair, a notebook open in front of him but his focus on the words he had just read. Jeeny stood by the window, her fingers lightly tracing the edge of the glass, watching the world outside. The quote from Scott Adams hung between them, inviting them into a conversation about failure, success, and the unexpected paths that shape our lives.

Jeeny: “I came across this quote from Scott Adams: ‘Most success springs from an obstacle or failure. I became a cartoonist largely because I failed in my goal of becoming a successful executive.’ It’s interesting, isn’t it? The idea that failure isn’t just a setback—it can be a stepping stone to something greater.”

Jack: “It’s almost counterintuitive, right? Failure is supposed to be the end, the point where everything falls apart. But Adams is saying that failure led him to success—not in the traditional sense, but in a way that allowed him to discover a completely different path, one he never would have found if he had succeeded in his original goal. It’s like he’s redefining what failure means.”

Jeeny: “Exactly. We’re often taught that success is about reaching a goal, meeting an expectation, achieving something specific. But what if failure is just a signal to adjust, to redirect? What if, instead of seeing failure as something negative, we started to see it as an opportunity to pivot, to try something new, to explore a path we wouldn’t have considered before?”

Host: The quiet in the room deepened, as if the very idea of failure being a path to success was sinking in. Jack’s fingers rested on the notebook, his eyes now focused on Jeeny, the weight of her words making their way into his thoughts.

Jack: “But isn’t it hard to embrace failure that way? When things don’t work out, it’s easy to feel like you’ve lost, like you’ve wasted time or energy. Even if you know intellectually that failure can lead to something better, it still feels like you’re starting over from scratch. It’s difficult to see possibility in the moment of defeat.”

Jeeny: “I get that. Failure doesn’t feel like a gift when you’re in the middle of it, especially when you’re attached to the idea of success as something specific. But what if we start looking at failure as a redirection rather than an end? The goal isn’t to avoid failure but to recognize that it’s a part of the journey. It’s the unexpected opportunities that arise when the original plan doesn’t work out. In Adams’ case, he never would have become a cartoonist if he had achieved his original career goal. Sometimes, failure just opens a new door.”

Jack: “It’s like when we fail, we’re forced to reevaluate, to rethink. That’s where the growth happens, right? We don’t stay stuck in our original plan, we learn to adapt, to adjust. And in doing that, we find something that might have been better than what we originally set out to achieve.”

Jeeny: “Exactly. Sometimes, the thing we think we want isn’t even the thing we need. Failure isn’t just a mistake; it’s part of the process of discovery. Adams might not have set out to be a cartoonist, but his failure at being an executive opened the door to a completely new world of possibilities.”

Host: The room seemed to quiet further, as though the weight of their conversation had created a space for new understanding. Jack leaned back in his chair, the idea of failure now taking on a different meaning, not as an obstacle, but as an essential part of the path forward.

Jack: “I think I’m starting to get it. It’s about embracing failure as part of the process, not something to avoid. And when we can let go of the attachment to specific outcomes, we allow ourselves the freedom to explore other paths, paths that might lead to even greater success than we originally imagined.”

Jeeny: “Yes. Failure teaches us flexibility, and through that flexibility, we discover things we might have missed if we were just focused on the original plan. The key is to keep moving forward, to keep learning from the setbacks and see them as stepping stones.”

Jack: “And in the end, maybe success isn’t about meeting our first goal. Maybe it’s about the journey, about how we adapt, how we respond to the failures along the way.”

Host: The room grew quieter still, the weight of their understanding settling into a comfortable silence. The sunset outside had deepened, the world now a soft palette of muted colors. The conversation about failure had shifted something within them both, like a realization that the setbacks, the moments of feeling lost or uncertain, are just part of the greater story of discovery. Sometimes, it’s the failure itself that guides us toward the success we never knew we needed.