From a young age, we are trained to be perfectionists in everything we attempt. We aim to ace that spelling test, win that race, become the fastest, strongest and essentially, the best. Although this mindset can trigger success as we constantly strive to better ourselves from our current state, it can also serve as our hamartia—our tragic flaw—making us paranoid that if we make a mistake, we will be condemned with failure. Although failure is a concept that we all strive to avoid, we cannot crouch in fear from it forever. But, has the fear of failure already affected the United States?

According to Bloomberg columnist Megan McArdle, “We are caught in the trap of believing that success involves not failing, when failure is actually necessary to success.” As a society, we have become so focused on the idealistic concept of life, rather than the harsh reality in which no one is perfect, success is not always attainable and occasional setbacks are an inherent part of society. It is important to recognize that perfection isn’t what one should strive to aim for, but rather success.

When faced with failure, we must be able to learn from these setbacks and improve upon them in the future. As Winston Churchill said, “Success is not final, failure is not fatal; it is the courage to continue that counts.” We all must be able to find the courage to face the fears and failure that may set us back and move forward. Only then will we be able to improve upon our greatness, thus setting a precedent for excellence.

The views in this column do not necessarily reflect the views of the HiLite staff. Reach Bethlehem Daniel at [email protected].