The only reason many people don't succeed at anything is because they haven't tried or been given the encouragement to do so
This is the whole crux of the problem. There are many people that tend to discourage you from obtaining (or at least trying) to obtain your dreams. What is interesting is that some people do this not because they want you to fail but rather because they do not want you to get hurt or discouraged. In reality even though their intentions are good what they are really doing is holding people back from the attempt at success.
How many have heard the saying "Its better to try and fail then to never try at all". This is advice that seems to be set aside in this age. In my opinion the true definition of failure is to give up. Therefore, If you never give up on obtaining a goal then you have never failed. Failure at an attempt should really be looked as a learning experience. A lot can be gained from a failed attempt to help you further your attempts at reaching your goal.
Sheltering someone from failure is really an attempt to keep them from experiencing the feelings of failure. However, Without experiencing failure you will never appreciate success. Thru failure we get an accurate idea of what it takes to succeed and what our true limits are. With that in mind we can come up with a winning plan to succeed. If you want to truly experience success then you have to accept failure as part of obtaining success. Failures are the building blocks to achieving your goals.
If you want a better income then you must put forth the effort and sacrifice to obtain that goal. This is why such leaders as those that created companies like HP, IBM, McDonald's are rich. Because of their hard work, Sacrifice and risk taking they have become unbelievably wealthy. Now contrast that to the worker at a fast food restaurant. Their investment in success is minimal and their risk is very little. They are comfortable in that they are not taking any risks. All they have to do is show up for work and do the tasks they were hired to perform. Yet they complain about their income. They demand more money so that they also can enjoy the benefits of success. However, They do not realize that success comes from developing a plan to better themselves and thus becoming more valuable asset to their employer or other employers that will recognize their worth. They are unwilling to take the steps necessary to climb the ladder of success. They just demand the benefits of success and listen to those that tell them that is a God given right. Nothing is farther from the truth.
Lets stray from this topic a bit to take a look at what I just said in the last paragraph.
There is a big effort by those workers in the fast food industry to increase their minimum wage far above what they earn now to over 15.00 dollars an hour. With this type of increase in hourly wage the money has to come from somewhere. Therefore the cost of the product has to rise. As the cost of the product rises these workers will realize that their buying power ultimately has not changed. Perhaps also the employer will look to cut costs to afford this wage increase and start laying off workers. With the layoff of workers the burden of extra work is shifted to those still remaining. Perhaps also the alternative for the employer is simply close the company down or move it to somewhere where the cost of labor is less. So, Success has not come to these workers. The definition of success still holds - The employee's have gained nothing because they have not fulfilled the requirements for success. All they had to realize is that if they wanted a better living income they should look to making themselves more valuable to the economy by developing better skills. Success can only be achieved thru dedication and hard work to a goal.
None of the below comments have anything to do with Success.
Some people are tone deaf and can never learn to sing in tune no matter how hard they try or much they want to.
Some people are color blind; they will never be able to distinguish one color from another.
Ludwig Van Beethoven, Will.i.am, Thomas Edison, many more.
Not everyone can grasp higher math, no matter how they try.
Higher math is not a prerequisite for Success. One of the richest men in my home town is the junk yard owner.
most people will never have strength of super athletes due to their genetic makeup.
Most people do not want to be Super Athletes. Most define Success in other terms.