Haley Ocampo

Mrs.Jenkins

EBA Honors English 10

15 May 2019

Failures Path to Success

Failure.​ A word that is known by an individual from a young age. At a young age ​failure

is something that most kids fear because of the consequences that follow with it. The disguised

reality was we learned from those mistakes. In the business world, failure is hard to accept but

it’s needed in order to grow and become successful. Each business is different,one failure is not

the end of the road, it is only the beginning of the next chapter. Each successful individual goes

through their own path of failure and success.

Passion for Success. ​The passion for some, like Warren Buffett, started at a young age.

“​At 11 years old he made his first investment, buying three shares of Cities Service Preferred at

$38 per share. The stock quickly dropped to only $27, but Buffett held on tenaciously until they

reached $40. He sold his shares at a small profit, but regretted the decision when Cities Service

shot up to nearly $200 a share. He later cited this experience as an early lesson in patience in

investing.” (Kenon) Two years later “[b]y the​ ​age of 13, Buffett was running his own businesses

as a paperboy and selling his own horse racing tip sheet. That same year, he filed his first tax

return, claiming his bike as a $35 tax deduction.”(Kenon) Having to move to Fredericksburg,

Virginia because of his father being elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, opened a new

door for Buffett business wise. During his time at a new school, “he and a friend purchased a
used pinball machine for $25. They installed it in a barbershop, and within a few months the

profits enabled them to buy other machines. Buffett owned machines in three different locations

before he sold the business for $1,200”(Kenon). After highschool, Buffett continued to pursue

business. Using his first few business experiences as the motivation to keep going. Like

everyone else, Buffet has made decisions that he regrets. “Buffett explained that he first invested

in Berkshire Hathaway in 1962 when it was a failing textile company. He thought ​he would

make a profit​ when more mills closed, so he loaded up on the stock.” (Woods) His investment

advice was: to “not let emotions factor into financial decisions.” (Woods) Learning from all the

success, and the encounters from decision flaws allowed Buffett to become one of the most

successful investors of all time.

Singular Path.​ Each person has their own individual path and must learn their own

lessons in order to succeed. The lesson learned from ​Herman Hesse's novel ​Siddhartha ​is : ​You

must go on your own journey in order to find inner peace. ​Throughout the novel, Siddhartha

spends majority of his life trying to follow someone else’s path to inner peace to find his own.

He goes around with different people and grows accustomed to their way of life hoping that if he

does everything they have done to achieve their inner peace, that he will be able to find his own.

He comes to a slump when someone else’s path doesn’t work for him.​ “I will no longer try to

escape Siddhartha. I will no longer devote my thoughts to atman and the sorrows of the world. I

will no longer mutilate and destroy myself in order to find a secret behind the ruins” (Hesse 32)

Siddhartha realizes that only he can find his own inner peace, and ignoring this fact isn’t going to

help him be successful. “We have learned and we are still learning. You will become a great

Samana, Siddhartha. You have learned each exercise quickly. The old samanas have often
praised you.” (Hesse 13) To succeed, Siddhartha learned from his lack of success that he must

follow his own path.

Relentless Resilience. ​Beginning to end, no matter what direction the business goes,

where a business started stays the same. The moment someone came across a brilliant idea that

solves a commonly shared problem amongst the everyday person doesn’t change. Daymond

John’s ​Power of Broke​ describes the reason why a business owner’s can’t lose their big picture.

They have to remember the passion that started their journey especially when they are at their

lowest point. This passion reminds them that they are going through failures for a reason, the

reason they haven’t given up yet is because that passion to help people solve a problem is what

started their journey. Daymond John’s ​Power of Broke​ encourages readers that once they have

hit rock bottom it isn’t the end of the road. Daymond John the founder of FUBU :

When you’re up against all odds, when you’ve exhausted every opportunity, when you’re

down to your last dime… that’s when you’ve got no choice but to succeed. You’re out of

options, man. So you double down, dig, deep, and switch into that relentless turbo mode

we’ve all got kicking around in our machinery. (John 2)

Working better than you did the day before is what helps you succeed. Instead of giving up,

successful individuals look past their failure and use the same passion that made them start their

journey to learn from their mistakes and move past towards success.

Each successful individual goes through their own path of failure and success. Failure is

not the end of the road. It’s not the point where you decide to give up. Failure helps us learn from

our mistakes and is what will help us move forward to become successful. One person’s success

can help inspire another person to get out of their own slump and can help encourage them to
move forward down their own path. Your success story can help inspire others to want to keep

trying until they reach their success.

 Works Cited

Biography.com Editors “Warren Buffett Biography.” ​Biography.com,

https://www.biography.com/people/warren-buffett-9230729​ Acessed 14 May.2019.

Hesse, Herman. ​Siddhartha.​New York, New Directions Publishing Corporations,1971.

John, Daymond. ​Power of Broke. ​United States, Crown Business, 2016.

Kennon, Joshua.” The Biography of Warren Buffett.” ​thebalance.com,

https://www.thebalance.com/warren-buffett-biography-356436​ Accessed 14 May.2019.

Woods, Laura. “Warren Buffett’s Failures: 15 Investing Mistakes he Regrets.” ​cnbc.com​,

https://www.cnbc.com/2017/12/15/warren-buffetts-failures-15-investing-mistakes-he-reg

rets.html​ Accessed 14 May.2019

“#3 Warren Buffett.” ​Forbes.com,

https://www.forbes.com/profile/warren-buffett/#2faa4e534639​ Accessed 14 May.2019.