Most reasonable people would agree that education is the ticket to success in America and the rest of the world.  Sure, there are those prefer to make fun of formal education and make you believe that their definition of education is better than the education that you get in school. Interestingly enough these people are in the business of selling you seminars.

This is not to say that the education system is without its faults.  The price of a higher education in the USA is becoming unaffordable for many people, and some are starting to question the value of their investment, especially in the current recessionary environment where many young adults are leaving college with thousands in debt and are unable to find a job.   But historically, higher education has proven to be one of the best investments you can make in your future.  See the article How to Increase Your Income for a detailed account of how the average salary varies based on your level of education.

This week the president of the United States spoke to millions of students about the importance of an education, without which, he would not have had the opportunities that have take him to the highest public office in the country.  Regardless of your political views, you must agree that his speech hit the mark when it comes the subject of success.

Here is an excerpt of the president’s speech, with some important highlights that succinctly summarize what being successful all about:

“I know that sometimes, you get the sense from TV that you can be rich and successful without any hard work – that your ticket to success is through rapping or basketball or being a reality TV star, when chances are, you are not going to be any of those things.

Being successful is hard.  You won’t love every subject you study.  You won’t click with every teacher.  Not every homework assignment will seem completely relevant to your life right this minute.  And you won’t necessarily succeed at everything the first time you try.

That’s OK.  Some of the most successful people in the world are the ones who’ve had the most failures.  JK Rowling’s first Harry Potter book was rejected twelve times before it was finally published.  Michael Jordan was cut from his high school basketball team, and he lost hundreds of games and missed thousands of shots during his career.  But he once said:  ‘I have failed over and over and over again in my life.  And that is why I succeed.’

These people succeed because they understand that you can’t let your failures define you – you have to let them teach you.  If you get in trouble, that doesn’t mean you are a troublemaker, it means you need to try harder to behave.  If you get a bad grade, that doesn’t mean you’re stupid, it just means you need to spend more time studying.

No one is born being good at things; you become good at things through hard work.  You’re not a varsity athlete the first time you play a new sport.  You don’t hit every note the first time you sing a song.  You’ve got to practice.  It’s the same with your schoolwork.”

Whether you are currently a student of not, these are powerful words that, if taken to heart, will determine your level of success in school, at work, or in life.