1831 - Lost his job



1832 - Defeated in run for State Legislature

1833 - Failed in business

1835 - Sweetheart died

1836 - Had nervous breakdown

1838 - Defeated in run for Illinois House Speaker

1843 - Defeated in run for nomination for U.S. Congress

1849 - Rejected for land officer position

1854 - Defeated in run for U.S. Senate

1856 - Defeated in run for nomination for Vice President

1858 - Again defeated in run for U.S. Senate

And finally he was elected the President of U.S. in 1960, which is indeed a very major achievement in a person's life. He is Abraham Lincoln- the man who single handedly fought against slavery and built one of the greatest Democracies in the world. And now, whenever we talk about Mr.A.Lincoln, we never recall his failures, which when counted are many. We always remember him as a very successful President. Abraham Lincoln is the biggest example in history for people who've failed in life and decided to quit. It teaches them that no matter how long the night is, the dawn will always follow!

Its not just Abraham Lincoln who sets this example for us. If we search the pages of History, we'll come across a number of people who turned from unsuccessful to successful people. What is it that turns failures into success? Is the meaning of success different for them? Do they have a secret approach towards success? Are they extraordinary?

Well, they are not extraordinary. But they are blessed with something which normal people lack. And that's determination and a strong will power. People who have their path to success paved with failures are the people who don't let failures affect them. Their dictionary doesn't contain the word 'impossible'. They don't know the meaning of quitting. They just believe in continuing their work without getting affected by the result.

All of us can change our failures to success. But we have to start thinking in a positive way. We have to put aside our failures and need to go ahead with our endeavors. We always need to think in the terms of how it can be improved rather than thinking what went wrong. Failures are painful. It is impossible to just ignore them but we need to develop our determination and tell ourselves: Meaning of Success doesn't lie in achievements. It lies in learning from your failures. This will help us in getting motivated and carry on with our work.

Whenever we fail, we should analyze the whole situation. Why we failed? Was something wrong with our goal setting? Plans? Do we need to put in more efforts? Once you understand the reason of your failure, you should start with a fresh attitude. You must take extra care of not repeating your mistakes in the next attempt.

We make countless mistakes in our daily life. When we learn to walk, when we learn to drive, when we learn to swim. But do we get baffled with our small failures. No. If we start getting affected by this mistake we'll never learn how to live, we'll never achieve anything. We'll never harness the meaning of success. Mistakes are precious lessons life teaches in a hard way. You can always learn from a mistake and never do it again unless and until it's fatal. And even if it is fatal, it can always teach others a lesson!!