It was the late Dr. Myles Munroe who said that the wealthiest place on earth is not the gold vaults or any other storehouse of wealth. Instead, the wealthiest place on earth is the graveyard. He said this because the graveyard holds many unrealized dreams; many books that were meant not only to be bestsellers but also to greatly impact a generation, yet were never written; blockbuster movies that were never produced; and so on.
Extrapolating from Dr. Myles’ statement, the grave is not only literal where bodies are disposed of, but anywhere, physical or not, where what could be is terminated. So, think now of the grave not only in literal terms.
Now imagine what the world would have been like if Isaac Newton had gone to the grave without giving us differential calculus and the laws of motion. Imagine what would have happened if the Wright brothers had died without inventing the airplane. Imagine what the world would be like if the creators of the internet had taken their idea to the grave without creating it. What if Steve Jobs had not pioneered the creation of the iPhone and other revolutionary products, or if Bill Gates had not created Microsoft?
Imagine what would have happened if Beethoven had died without composing music, or if Mozart had gone to the grave without producing his masterpieces. Imagine, again, what would have happened if Nelson Mandela had gone to the grave without becoming Nelson Mandela, or if Kwame Nkrumah had died without becoming Kwame Nkrumah. Or perhaps, what would Afrobeat have become if Fela Kuti had not made and performed music? Now imagine what could be lost if you did not…?
It is hard to imagine these things, not because they are impossible, but because the reality you know today was created by men and women, some long gone and others still alive.
The grave is the wealthiest place on earth because of a particular human emotion, among other things. That emotion is fear-specifically, the fear of failure.
The fear of failure has sent many of the world’s and society’s best to the grave because of the question, “What if I fail?” And so, they remain there.
What are you afraid of? Do you not know that failure has created more sustainable success than success has ever replicated itself? Recently, I have found myself talking to some people and wishing them failure-and in some cases, praying they fail quickly. One thing graduate school has repeatedly taught me is that until I am failing, I am not making the progress I should.
One of the things I love and admire about America is its culture of encouraging and even “celebrating” failure. I believe this culture is fundamental to why America is the superpower it is today. I often say that it is only in America that Elon Musk could build SpaceX and everything else he has built.
Failure is a necessary component of success, not its opposite. To avoid failure is to avoid success. Before SpaceX became what it is today, it was once a laughingstock. All the crashes were necessary for the success that is now being celebrated.
On July 31, 2025, I saw on Instagram a video of a space rocket built by an Australian company crashing in Australia after just 14 seconds of flight. Watching the crash, I said, “This is a necessary crash for the success that is to come.” If anything must rise and stay up, it first falls, and every fall is progress. This is because only those who build can test, receive feedback, and turn that feedback into the input needed for future success.
Before you could walk and now run, you fell several times. Despite those falls, your parents rejoiced. They did not try to prevent you from falling; they only ensured your safety. Had they tried to stop you from falling, you would still be crawling today. Why would you now want to stop yourself from failing when failing is an integral part of your becoming? I am not saying you should do things wrongly just to fail, but you find what is right and expected of you for the achievement of what you desire, and do it knowing fully well that you will miss it not once or twice but many times, and when you do, that is very okay.
Which would you prefer? A movie where the main character had success all through the movie, or one where he/she had setbacks and their recovery from the setback(s) is the central theme of the movie? I guess you will choose the latter.
Get any of my books here, or the course ‘About the Future’ here