Israeli diplomat: Lack of a fear of failure ultimately leads to success

Steve Euvino, kokomoperspective.com

Birman image from article

HOBART — Never underestimate the power of chutzpah. And don’t be afraid to fail.

According to an Israeli diplomat, those two qualities have propelled Israel, a relatively young country the size of New Jersey, to world leadership in such areas as water treatment, cyber security and agriculture.

Moran Birman, consul for public diplomacy [JB emphasis] to the Consulate General of Israel to the Midwest, highlighted his country’s innovative spirit to an audience of college students and community members at the Global Diversity Luncheon Tuesday at Avalon Manor Banquet Center.

“If you have a good idea, you have to continue and not give up,” Birman said, “and eventually you’ll have it.”

In a country that is 60 percent desert and has only one lake, many of Israel’s innovations, especially in water treatment, came out of necessity, Birman said.

An innovative spirit, the diplomat said, led to an irrigation system that uses less water and costs less. It also created a water dissemination system now used in other parts of the world.

Overcoming obstacles, Birman said, is rooted in Israeli history, along with chutzpah. “To be creative, you have to challenge what everybody thinks,” Birman said. “When you think you can do it a different way, that leads to innovation.”

Today, Birman continued, a country of 8 million people ranks fourth in the number of industries listed on NASDAQ, trailing only the U.S., Canada, and China. Israel also boasts a dozen Nobel laureates, including six in chemistry.

The Global Diversity Luncheon drew an audience of students and staff from Ivy Tech Community College, Valparaiso University and Purdue University Northwest.

Business consultant Dennis Hodges, who coordinated the event, said it was “important for young people to know what’s going on.”

Birman said Israel has engaged in social innovation, doing things to make the world a better place. He cited motorcycles converted to ambulances. Response time has been cut from 20 minutes to two, saving lives in the process.

Another social innovation involves Israeli experts in post-traumatic stress disorder coming to Chicago to assist clergy and others dealing with street crime and violence.

Birman also said Israeli schools enhance the notion that failure is OK because it will eventually lead to success.

“Failure is fine. You can be wrong,” Birman said. “The idea will lead you to a good result.”

That message resonated with Isabel James of Lake Station, from the Ivy Tech Student Government Association. “In this country, we’re scared to fail. We think that if we fail, it’s over,” the business major said. “When you fail, don’t be scared. Come up with a better idea.”