The Evening statesman. [volume] (Walla Walla, Wash.) 1903-1910, 1906-09-20
PERSONAL FAILURE.
People Who Are Always Driving Su,
cess Away From Them.

People Who Are Always Driving Sue
cess Away From Them.
One Of the strangest paradoxes in
human nature Is that men and women
struggling. apparently with all their
might, to succeed are yet constantly
doing things, saying things and think
ing things which drive the very success
they are after away from them. They
are all the time counteracting their
efforts by some foolishness or weak
ness or indiscretion. They are saying
things which prejudice people against
them and doing things which destroy
confidence. Although they apparently
try very hard to build a foundation,
they are all the time undermining
themselves.
Men work like Trojans to get a COW
eted position and then, by getting
puffed up with conceit or by some fool
ish or weak act. knock the scaffolding,
which they have been years in build
ing, out from under them. and down
they 60. Their lives are a series Of
successive climbs and tumbles, so that
they never get anywhere. never accom-
plish anything worth while. Always
tripping themselves up, neutralizing
their work-this is their greatest STUN
bling block.
1 know a powerful editorial writer
who Yields a strong, vigorous pen. but
who at sixty years Of age is just where
he was at twenty. He has had scores
Of good positions, but he could not
keep them because Of his indiscretions.
because CT a hot temper and a sensitive
nature which was always being
wounded by trifles. There is no
harder worker than he is. Every time
he gets knocked down he begins at the
bottom and starts planning and re-
climbing, only to fall back again like
the tabled frog trying to get out of the
well.
Now, II this man had taken an inven-
tory Of himself In his youth and
strengthened two or three little weak
points. he would have been a giant in
the field of letters.
There are thousands Of men who are
working as clerks or in very ordinary
salaried positions who might have been
employers or prOprietOrs themselves
but for some unfortunate weakness.
some little deficiency in their natures
or some peculiarity-sOmeth which
might have been remedied by a little
discipline and self study in youth. 1t Isl
not an unusual thing to see a man in !
some subordinate situation who but
for one of these little lacks would have
been a holder man than his employer.
And so he has to submit to the :lmili-
alton of plOdding through life in a me
diocre position when he feels conscious !
that he has superior ability to those
who are over him.
1t is tragic to see thousands of peo-
pie constantly pushing away from
themselves through life the very sue
cess they are trying to achieve, push
ing it away because they do not con-
troll hot temper, because of some lit
tie indiscretiOn or other weakness or
lack in their nature.
Others are always driving success
away from them by their doubts, their
fears, their lack of courage, their lack
of confidence; driving it away by
thought habits which repel success con-
ditiOns. They never make themselves
magnets to attract success, but keep
so many enemies Of achievement in
their mind that there is no home for
harmony there, no place for a strong
purpose. They hold the failure thought,
the doubt thought, the poverty thought.
instead of clinging to the success
thought, the thought of abundance. I'M
til they attract achievement and plenty.
Success Magazine. I