Brooding on upsets keeps us groping for a veneer of certainty while adrift an ocean of obscurity. Shacked by the fetters of the past, focusing on what could have been rather than what is bogs us down in our way towards achieving our goals. The nostalgia of setbacks evokes pangs of desolation and despair that can act as great impediments on the path of progress. That’s exactly what separates the hoi polloi from the handful of determined people who refuse to be held back by failures: The ability to look ahead even while beset by countless hurdles.

It was the great determination of JF Kennedy to match the USSR stroke for stroke in the space race that ended up with Neil Armstrong stepping on the moon in 1969. The basketball legend Michael Jordan refused to throw in the towel and kept trying to improve his game after he was left out of his high-school basketball team. Similarly, Lance Armstrong refused to lie low when he was hit with testicular cancer. With his almost surreal grit, not only did he make a comeback into professional cycling, but also went on to win seven consecutive Tour de France titles. A determined person will do anything to make his dreams come true. This leads to astonishing achi-evements that seem incredible to ordinary folks.

Setbacks are only stepping stones to success for these people. They take bruises and injuries in their stride and keep moving against all odds. Somehow, from somewhere, they summon up the strength to keep fighting to the finish. Someone’s rightly said: “It is not the person that wins the first time out of the gate who demonstrates strength, stamina, wisdom and grit. Rather it is the one who has run before and narrowly missed the finish line; for whom the victory tastes the sweetest.”

The important thing is to learn from mistakes. The good news is that all humans are capable of doing that if they choose so. Once we realise that it is our false belief that is holding us back, we can choose to think better and forge ahead with determination. History bears testament that it is those who persevere when all chips are down, those who stand tall when all others cower, and those who choose to win even in the face of imminent loss are true achievers.