We have to be careful that what doesn’t matter to us might not be the same for someone else. The best path to follow is to focus on ourselves instead of being preoccupied with how someone else is spending their time and energy.

“I’m not afraid of failure, I’m afraid of succeeding at things that don’t matter.”

This quote is often attributed to the famous missionary William Carey or the evangelical pastor D. L. Moody. But I can’t find the historical source material where either said it.

But, it’s a great quote, isn’t it?

People are generally afraid of failure, but they shouldn’t be. If we live always afraid of failure, then we’ll never try new things or take the needed risks to effect good change.

You may not agree; you may think failure should be avoided at all costs. If so, you have some big problems. For instance, William Carey would never have left England to be a missionary in India if he followed what you believe.

But that’s a subject to develop at another time.

Look at the end of the quote.

We don’t want to succeed at things that don’t matter.

That sounds right; we want to succeed at things that matter.

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