The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1904-11-13

r HIS is the story Of a failure. 1t is
told because it has a moral to
"a striking lesson to, the young
worker who lacks self-cOnfidence. It's
relation ought to instill into every am
bilious mind the Importance of that
quality plainly called grit.
Lack Of self-confidence has caused
more failures among young men and
women than lack Of ability will ever
cause. Most aspiring workers have
merit. If they were able TO collect
their thoughts. be calm-be themselves
i'm facial the crucial moment, they
would be able to hold the position they
desire to attain. be it their initial at
tempt or merely a promotion.
II is not surprising, either, that
young people do fail at the crucial
momeut-~fall down." to use a slangy
but telling expression The tension is
great. The telegrapher, after having
practiced six months and supposedly
perfecting himself so that ne can send
or receive with perfect ease and ac-
Curacy. finds suddenly when he sits
down To a wire where real business
is being carried that he is nearly over
come by stage fright" if il may be
termed that in the telegraph business.
lie finds that the dots and dashes are
confusing. as they fairly leap out of
the sOunder, and they almost bewilder
him. He tries his own hand on the
key and the dots instead of being full
and strong are weak. and the dashes
often resemble dots. When he gets to
the point where it really mans SOM
thing he is apt TO lose his head. But
81 he Gains himself. il he refuses to
let is mind "Get ratified" if he works
IS he did in practice. he viii not fail.
20
They become able to take dictatiOn at
the rate Of sixty words a minute from
their instructor, but when they sit be-
before "A business man-their employer
they are possessed Of with the same
sort OF a feeling as attacks the opera
tor. They are nervous and fearful. If
the man does not talk distinctly at all
times they become irritated and are
unable 10 catch his words. This leads
10 questions that are not only embar-
RAISING TO the employee but may be IA
tai to his success in the start.
The young reporter sent out on his
first assignment goes with a heavy
heart. afraid that he viii fall down
on the story. Thus burdened he is not
apt to put forth his best efforts: he
is apt 20 give up. too easily. He lacks
the self-reliance- Of the older reporter
who is able to do seemingly impossible
things because ne mas grit and IS not
afraid TO go ahead.
This same lack Of self-cOnfidence is
the greatest preventive OF the young
workers in failing TO take advantage
OF opportunity. There is an old adase
that says opportunity knocks only once
at each door. This may or may not
be literally true, but IL is certain that
many aspirants to success have failed
in promotion because. when the oppor-
tUnity 10 attempt something greater
came. they faltered and. fearful that
they would not make good" preferred
20 stick TO what they had.
AS a rule Il may be assumed that a
person TO whom such opportunity is
offered has everything 10 gain and
nothing TO lose IL he attempts 10 enter
the broader field.
With this. in view, therefore. il is
always safe. to try for the greater pO-
sition when it is offered. Surely nc
harm can come, Il one fails, and a per-
son is in reality much more likely to
win than to fail. At any rate, the
risk Is well worth taking-and it may
he some time before an opportunity
again presents itself OF course, the
essence Of success in such cases is self
confidence. seif-reliance and grit
This story deals with a man who
failed because he was afraid to take
the risk just mentioned. He. too. had
everything to gain and nothing to lose
but he let opportunity pass without
even as much as courteous bow
James Murphy lived in a small town
out IN Minnesota He came To America
leland when the west was still