The Immortal Spirit of Michael Jordan

“I have missed more than 9,000 shots and lost 300 games.
I have been trusted to take the game-winning shot and missed 26 times.
I have failed over and over again in my life.
That is why I succeed!”

Michael Jordan's words are among the top five most comforting and helpful
quotes for me.

The fact that he speaks about his failures in this way is also often seen
in athletes like Ichiro and Shuzo Matsuoka.

Since all three are athletes, I think there is a part of their hearts
that is easy to relate to.

He has many quotes, but he strongly recommends trying to take on challenges first.
He possesses a spiritual philosophy that you never know until you try.

Because he can encourage those around him by talking about his own failures, he very strongly
publicizes how much he challenged himself, repeated failures over and over, endured
everything that came with it throughout his life, and after repeating failures again,
finally grasped success.

This means he is saying that this is what a successful person is like, so these words
contain meanings such as 'do not fear failure,' 'there is always failure before success,'
and 'failure is the stepping stone to success.'

Everything begins with taking on a challenge first.
He says that while that challenge will likely result in failure, do not worry about it.
Among the words I often use, there is a quote from a great person that says,
'Everyone was a beginner at first.'

I think that is true. The probability of a beginner achieving great success immediately
is not zero, but it is certainly as close to zero as possible.

In other words, failing is natural, and while the road to success is long and distant,
he has left behind many words saying that success awaits beyond overcoming those things.

The number of times he has failed is abnormally high.
The important point is that even after repeating that many failures, he did not give up on challenging himself.

He himself also left behind the words,
'I can accept failure, but I cannot give up trying.'
I believe many people have been greatly encouraged by these words.

Among them, there are surely successful people as well.

Everything starts with a challenge, and there are many people who cannot easily take that first step.

However, you should know that if you are going to take on a challenge, it is better to do it as soon as possible.

In that case, why not just take the dive into a challenge?

No one wants to fail. However, through failure, there are always things you will notice.
It is acknowledged by great people all over the world that by repeating this process, you can obtain the key to success.

This means you can say it is something that is absolutely certain.

There are people who learn many things, and there are people who devote their lives to one thing.

That is up to that person's will, so I think if you can do it, you should, and naturally, to learn a lot,
the number of failures will increase in response.

Therefore, although this is my personal opinion,
I believe that if you have two or three things you are passionate about, that is enough to fully enjoy life.
I think you can fully enjoy life.

However, if you do nothing and just grow older,
a miserable life, which we often see, where you only complain,
awaits you.

Spending the rest of your life complaining, for example—I just thought about it for a moment,
but I cannot understand it.

I do not wish for such a life, and I have no intention of living one,
so I could not understand it.

You should find at least one thing you love, otherwise,
every day will just be a life of waking up, eating,
and sleeping.

However, if you have even one thing you can be passionate about,
you will be able to pour your life into that one thing.

In a human life, I think that difference is very significant.

If you are going to do it, it is better to do it as early as possible, as you have the strength to endure failure,
and it is somewhat easier to cultivate a spirit of learning.

Even if you read books, watch movies, or do various things,
if you cannot make them your own,
nothing will come of it.

It is good to watch a drama and start taking lessons,
and I think it is also good to listen to music and learn an instrument.

In my case, I was torn between writing a novel or learning music.
Either way, I hope to be able to make a living from it.

That is why I use note for myself,
and I am practicing writing while learning.

Last November, I received a medal saying a year had passed,
and I wondered if a year had already gone by.
It felt like it had passed in the blink of an eye.

At that time, I looked at what I had written in the beginning,
and it was in a terrible state. However, I also realized at the same time
how much I had grown.

There is meaning in continuing, and it also changes depending on how hard you can try,
but I think you should be prepared for it to be in a terrible state at first.

Starting is what is important, and no matter how terrible your writing becomes,
by continuing, you will definitely grow.

I have been helped many times by Michael Jordan's words,
so I am very grateful for his words.

His words have helped me many times,
enough to clear away my distracting thoughts.

You cannot do anything if you are afraid of failure.
What is important is the courage to challenge yourself, and if you have the tenacity to keep trying,
it makes it possible to continue.

If you keep going, you will definitely start to find it interesting.
I think you should consider that a sign that you are starting to understand.

Once you understand the fun of it, you realize that it is
much more difficult than you had thought.

Through that repetition, you will
achieve growth.

As I write this, I am realizing once again that it is important to
take on challenges in everything.