Good morning, honorable judges, respected teachers, fellow participants, and dear friends.
Assalamualikum wr wb, my name is Diana Kamila, I study at madrasah raudlatul ulum2, I
am in second grade and I take social sciences department.
It is truly an honor to speech here today at the prestigious University of Brawijaya event,
representing not just my school but also the voice of every young dreamer who dares to grow
through the cracks of hardship. This moment, for me, feels like one of those beautiful
instances where the seed of struggle begins to bloom into the flower of knowledge.
Ladies and gentlemen, we often hear the phrase “failure is the best teacher.” But let me ask
you, when we fail, do we truly treat it as a lesson? Or do we treat it like a wall, a dead-end, a
full stop? For many of us, failure is something we avoid, something that makes us
uncomfortable. We see it as a mark of weakness or a signal that we aren’t enough. But what if
failure wasn’t the end? What if failure is just the beginning of something even greater?
The truth is, those setbacks are not the opposite of success. They are the very soil in which
success takes root. Consider a seed, it is buried, surrounded by darkness, pressed by soil, and
soaked by rain. Yet from that struggle, it grows. Not despite the struggle, but because of it.
Now we can see from the pressure, growth begins.
Well, Each setback we face, whether it’s failing an exam, losing a competition, or facing
rejection, holds within it a silent invitation: "Will you crumble, or will you climb?"
We all face setbacks in life, but the key is not avoiding them; it’s learning how to turn them
into stepping stones. Take the example of Michael Jordan, who is considered one of the
greatest basketball players of all time. He was famously cut from his high school basketball
team. He could have let that failure define him. Instead, he used it as motivation to push
harder, to work longer, and to grow stronger. He once said, “I’ve missed more than 9,000
shots in my career. I’ve lost almost 300 games. Twenty-six times I’ve been trusted to take the
game-winning shot and missed. He could have given up. But he chose to use that setback as
fuel to train harder, push further, and prove that failure was not the end, but the beginning.
” Yet, he turned every failure into a learning opportunity. And that’s why he became who he
is.
Friends, I used to believe that intelligence was the key to progress. But I’ve come to realize
resilience is the true currency of learning. Resilience transforms obstacles into opportunities.
It transforms the pain of “I can’t” into the power of “I will.”
Setbacks are not signs of weakness they are invitations. They ask, “Will you stop here? Or
will you take one more step forward?” The difference between those who grow and those
who give up is not talent, or luck, or intelligence. It is the ability to turn every fall into a
foundation, every crack into a chance.
Many of us have experienced moments of rejection, disappointment, and doubt. Maybe it was
a bad grade, a lost opportunity, or a dream that didn’t come true. But those moments painful
as they are carry within them a hidden power. The power to build resilience. The power to
start again, stronger than before.
Every setback is like a stone. You can carry it as a burden or lay it down and use it as a step.
A step toward becoming better, wiser, and braver.
Let me ask you today, what is your setback trying to teach you?
Think about it…..life will always bring challenges. But it also gives us a choice: to stop or to
step up. To break or to build.
Even history shows us this. Walt Disney was told he lacked imagination. Oprah Winfrey was
told she was “unfit for television.” J.K. Rowling was rejected by multiple publishers. But
they turned rejection into redirection and look where they are now.
Friends, let’s not be afraid to fail. Let’s be afraid of giving up too soon. Let’s turn setbacks
into stories of strength. Let’s turn every “no” into motivation. Let’s turn every closed door
into a reason to find another way in. Because the road to success isn’t straight it’s built from
the very stones we stumble over. So next time you fall, don’t stay down. Pick up that stone.
Step on it. And rise.
Thank you.
