If You Think You Are Beaten, You Are

Looking through some of my father’s memorabilia, I found a journal he wrote as a young man living in California. I hadn’t known that he ever kept a journal, but in it I found the poem below. It is quite a famous poem written by Walter D. Wintle sometime in the late 19th or early 20th century. No one knows much about this man, not even if that is his real name or a pseudonym. I don’t know why dad kept this poem, but I do know it exemplifies who he was and how he lived.

 

Thinking

 

If you think you are beaten, you are

If you think you dare not, you don't,

If you'd like to win, but think you can't

It's almost a cinch you won't.

 

If you think you'll lose, you've lost

For out in the world we find,

Success begins with a fellow's will

It's all in the state of mind.

 

If you think you're outclassed, you are

You've got to think high to rise,

You've got to be sure of yourself before

You can ever win a prize.

 

Life's battles don't always go

To the stronger or faster man,

But soon or late the man who wins

Is the one WHO THINKS HE CAN!

― Walter D. Wintle

 

As I re-read the poem the other night, I was touched by its simplicity and clarity. Its message suggests that we control our own destiny by developing and strengthening our inner belief in ourselves. Upon reflection I recognized the importance of having a positive attitude, taking action to deal with our challenges, and making changes that improve our lives.

 

My musings lead me to think about a very intelligent friend of mine. When we were in high school, a local TV station sponsored a weekly competition called the INQUIRING EDITOR. It was a Girls vs. Boys battle on weekly current event topics. It was an honor to be selected to participate, as only four girls and four boys were chosen by the faculty to represent their school. When it was our school’s turn to participate, my friend was chosen and assigned to study the two local daily newspapers and be prepared to respond to questions on current events.

 

He studied and came to the competition well prepared. He had the chance to answer several questions but didn’t do well. His poor performance could have been chalked up to nerves, but I believe it went deeper. He suffered from severe self-doubt. This came at least in part from being raised in a dysfunctional home where compliments, positivity and love were seldom expressed.

 

My friend never knew what success tasted like. He never believed what others saw in him, that he was intelligent, capable, and likeable. Just a few short years ago, he died alone in his apartment at the unmerciful hands of someone else.

 

I don’t know what his life would have been like if he had been able to believe in himself, adopt a positive attitude, and put his potential into action.

 

All of us have moments when we doubt ourselves, want to run away from our challenges, and quit. We dream of the day we will be free of whatever it is that stops us, but the reality is that it takes action to make it happen. The last stanza of the poem provides a formula for meeting the challenges of life and accomplishing our dreams and goals.

 

Life's battles don't always go

To the stronger or faster man,

But soon or late the man who wins

Is the one who thinks he can.

― Walter D. Wintle

 

We all want our children to recognize their strengths, believe in themselves, and above all develop the confidence to know they can do what they make up minds to do. As Henry Ford so eloquently put it, “Whether you think you can or whether you think you can’t, you're right!”

 

 

Happy Failing Forward,

 

Calvert and Anne