“Our greatest weakness lies in giving up. The most certain way to succeed is always to try just one more time.” ~ Thomas Edison
Today’s story teaches us that we should not be conditioned or limited by perceived barriers that may not exist.
During a research experiment, a marine biologist placed a shark into a large holding tank and then released several small bait fish into the tank. As you would expect, the shark quickly swam around the tank, attacked, and ate the smaller fish.
The marine biologist then inserted a strong piece of clear fiberglass into the tank, creating two separate partitions. She then put the shark on one side of the fiberglass and a new set of bait fish on the other.
Again, the shark quickly attacked. This time, however, the shark slammed into the fiberglass divider and bounced off. Undeterred, the shark kept repeating this behavior every few minutes to no avail. Meanwhile, the bait fish swam around unharmed in the second partition. Eventually, about an hour into the experiment, the shark gave up.
This experiment was repeated several dozen times over the next few weeks. Each time, the shark got tired of hitting the fiberglass divider and stopped attacking altogether.
The marine biologist removed the fiberglass divider, but the shark did not attack. The shark was trained to believe a barrier existed between it and the baitfish, so the bait fish swam wherever they wished, free from harm.
The Moral of the Story: Most people tend to give up after facing a series of setbacks and failures. But do not let these setbacks keep you from trying again. Think of each setback as an opportunity to learn. Do not let the barriers that you set for yourself in your mind keep you from achieving your goals. Remember, nothing is impossible if you set your mind to it.