“We spend our time responding rationally to a world which we understand and recognize but which no longer exists.”

This quote is from a TED Talk on Ted.com where business man Eddie Obeng comments on failure and its relation to the world around us. Obeng is talking about decisions and how times have changed and will change again. Consistency is only temporary. His “talk” is titled “Smart Failure for a Fast Changing World.”

In all honesty, I didn’t stumble upon this video by myself. My dad made me watch it to “expand my horizons.” Because I’m not the type of teenager that sits on her computer watching business men give lectures all day.

But while reading the title something clicked. There are no correct answers. This is something Obeng emphasizes.

High school students don’t want to fail, obviously, and neither do adults. But the problem my peers and I are faced with right now is the failure to make the right decision. That could mean about our personal lives, about work, or even about school. No one wants to be a screw up.

“Failing” 50 years ago is much different than the modern day definition. College wasn’t as important as it is now and getting a job was much easier. It feels like applying to the wrong school or even attending the wrong school will lead to a bum job and a bum life.

So much is riding on these next few years for us that it seems like one wrong turn and our ticket to a good life will become void.

Obeng’s quote gives us hope for the future. Because if you think about it, what he says is true. Things will change. So maybe you won’t get into your dream college, or maybe you’ll choose the “wrong” one. But things change. And maybe in another 50 years school won’t mean anything.

But you don’t know and I don’t know. That’s the point. You do your best now—without complaining, I hope—and deal with the future when it comes.

So really, you can’t “fail.” Because what does failure even mean? It’s a loose term used to describe a situation when things go the wrong way. But the wrong way might lead you to the right way…you never know.