Quote of the Day: Anthony J. D'Angelo on Success

If you’ve ever stared at a setback and wondered whether it disqualifies you, then this insight from Anthony J. D’Angelo is the permission slip you’ve been waiting for: “In order to succeed you must fail, so that you know what not to do the next time.”

D’Angelo isn’t romanticizing collapse; he’s describing the unglamorous mechanics of progress. Most first attempts are guesses dressed up as plans. Failure strips away the flattering story we tell ourselves, about our preparation, our timing, our instincts, and replaces it with hard data. What broke? Where did you cut corners? What assumption turned out to be wishful thinking? That information is rarely available when everything goes right.

The deeper point is strategic: failure teaches subtraction. It narrows the field of possibilities by eliminating what doesn’t work, and it does so with an emotional sting that makes the lesson stick. That sting can be productive, sharpening judgment and upgrading your process, if you treat it as feedback instead of a verdict. Done well, failure becomes a training ground for resilience, and a reminder that real success is usually iterative, not instantaneous.

As a voice in personal development, leadership, and entrepreneurship, Anthony J. D'Angelo has spent years translating ambition into practical habits through books, speeches, and mentoring. His work tends to favor repeatable systems over motivational fireworks, exactly the mindset this quote demands.

December has a way of turning life into a ledger: what worked, what didn’t, what needs to change before the calendar flips again. Apply this today by revisiting one recent failure and writing down three specifics you will not repeat, then design the next attempt around those exclusions.