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In his excellent book: “Zero to One: Notes on Startups, or How to Build the Future”, Peter Thiel asks a question. He calls it “the draconian question” that is asked of everyone he considers hiring. The question is posed on page 1, and for the rest of the book, that question kept spinning in my mind: What would my answer be if I asked myself the Draconian question?

The draconian question: “On what important truth do very few agree with you?” That is a very good question. Force you to think outside the box and stand up for something.

Peter Thiel, here is my answer to your draconian question: “Most people think that doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result is crazy.” However, the truth is quite the opposite.

Consider the following:

(1) Let me start by asking parents, “How much time would you give your child to learn to walk?”

In other words, what is it like to learn to walk, but to hold your child upright and watch him move his pretty feet, trying to keep his balance before falling. How often and for how long would you do the same thing over and over again hoping that your child would not wobble and fall, but wobble and stand tall?

I think any parent would respond, ‘I’m going to help my son learn to walk for as long as it takes.’ It is no wonder that all children end up walking, and no one feels that it is crazy to keep doing the same thing over and over again hoping for a different result.

(2) Lightweight. Humans are the only species that is not a slave to sunrise and sunset in search of light. For this, we can thank a prolific inventor with just three months of official schooling; Thomas Edison.

As a reminder, how did Thomas Edison accomplish his feat? Edison tested many thousands of different materials before, on October 22, 1879, he found the correct combination of carbon filament connected to platen contact leads; and there was light!

In other words, Edison tried the same thing over and over again; to create light by combining various materials and hoping that the result will be different from the thousands of previous disappointments. Did “everyone”, from other investors, journalists and the general public, try to convince you that you were crazy for doing the same thing over and over again expecting a different result? You can bet they did. However, I am very happy that he was not discouraged.

(3) Learn any trade. Let me choose tennis to illustrate. In tennis, there are eight basic shots: serve, forehand, backhand, volley, half volley, overhead, drop shot, and lob.

How many have won a tournament by inventing and introducing a new shot? None.

How do you learn to play tennis? Practicing the eight basic strokes over and over again and hoping to improve a little each time you practice.

How are tournaments won? Practicing the eight basic strokes more often and with more vigor than your competition, hoping that your investment in repetition will do you better.

Is there an alternative to ‘doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result is crazy?’

Yes. The Chinese wisdom of “You cannot step twice on the same flowing river” is much more appropriate. Especially today, with everything constantly changing, and just because something didn’t work out yesterday, it has changed so much since yesterday that with a little adjustment you can be successful today.

Your future is a blank canvas. It is up to you to paint the masterpiece of your life. It doesn’t matter if you feel like you were unsuccessful yesterday, last month, or last year. Only you can make the difference you want to make in your life, and the only time you have failed is when you give up.

For your best success,

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