in a previous thread on ironman Norton threw in about a sign he had seen which I have also seen as a bumper sticker which read;
'what would you attempt if you knew you could not fail?’
This got me thinking again (happens occasionally). People are generally driven by challenges, a la ironman, but if you knew you couldn’t fail, where is the challenge? Would you still want to achieve it?
Is your goal still as desirable?
I would go for the Olympic championship 2012, 2016 and 2020…!! : )
When I’m to “slow-twitched” for the Olys, I would make double on Hawaii and win Zofingen…
Can this fail!? 
Schmidt-DK
I would not attempt anything with purely personal significance. The enjoyment is in knowing that you could fail.
If I could not fail, I’d attempt to discover the cure for cancer, AIDS, and the common cold. (or some other disease, pick your favorite)
Skydiving!
and
put the moves on Shari/becca/et al (but don’t tell Mrs Brian)
I’d give Monica Bellucci a call.
Mt. Everest, but I guess I would want to attempt that even knowing that I might fail.
I guess the possibility of failure makes any “attempt” more exciting. 
Herbert
Once again. . .WAAAAAAYYYYYY too much honesty and truth here, Francois! Seriously,. . .I’m with you. If I know I can do something. . .I haven’t got the slightest inclination to do so. Why live life as a robot. . .beholden to the masses.
I would attempt to make a billion dollars. I think with a billion dollars i could really spend some time training, and some serious money on my equipment.
"What would you attempt if you knew you could not fail?"
Shouldn’t that read “What would you do if you knew you could not fail?” If you can’t fail then you would never attempt.
Professionally: Start a Networking company that beats Cisco, a semiconductor company that beats Intel, a software company that beats Microsoft and give the money to the poor in India so they can go to schools and get educated
Personally: Make my wife and son happy every day. I know there are multiple days in a month when I can make them upset with silly arguements about nothing !
Athletically: Ride the TdF
Fantasy: Live the life of Kramer on Seinfeld
I would attempt to make a move on Carmen Electra.k
.
I thought about this one while I was riding this morning- good question. It was a cold and nasty ride by the way and a cop car almost ran me over.
Anyway.
I wouldn’t attempt anything I knew I wouldn’t fail at. What’s the point? If I know I could succeed that is enough for me. If I don’t know that I can succeed, well, then we have something to talk about.
It seems pointless and dull to do something that has guaranteed success. Where is the thrill in that? Where is the accomplishment? What have learned or gained- whether you succeed or not.
Some of my greatest accomplishments were born of failures.
Run for Pope.
I thought about this one while I was riding this morning- good question. It was a cold and nasty ride by the way and a cop car almost ran me over.
Anyway.
I wouldn’t attempt anything I knew I wouldn’t fail at. What’s the point? If I know I could succeed that is enough for me. If I don’t know that I can succeed, well, then we have something to talk about.
It seems pointless and dull to do something that has guaranteed success. Where is the thrill in that? Where is the accomplishment? What have learned or gained- whether you succeed or not.
Some of my greatest accomplishments were born of failures.
Tom, I have to agree with you. I have taken away great strength for the rest of my life, knowing that in my weakest moments in the depth of Ironman blowups I have been able to suck it up and finish somehow. If nothing else, the lessons that we learn in sport can be applied to our lives at large, be it professional or personal.
I coach kids in soccer and XC skiing. Somewhere in my heart, that I hope that one of these kids will one day play for Manchester United or ski in the Olympic games, but the reality is that what I really hope that I do accomplish is to impart a huge work ethic in them and the fearlessness that you need to try something that looks really tough knowing that there is a good chance of failure. At the end of every season the parents and the kids always say that they did not think that they would get to the level of skill and ability that they achieved by the end of the season.
Is this not what life is all about. Trying, failing, trying again and succeeding. Just ask Mark Allan…6 “failures” at KONA before beating Dave Scott, toe to toe in 89. One might argue that the fear of failure and the learned experiences from the 6 attempts made him that much stronger !
To my mind, you’re basically asking, “What would you do if you were God?”
Climb Everest? Done.
Cure cancer? Why not?
Build computers out of crystals? Easy.
Bring about world peace? Absolutely.
Transform myself into a being of pure light and energy to embrace the universe with love? Well, maybe not.
If I could do anything that I wanted to, then simply willing it would cause it to be, thereby removing any motivation to do that thing. So I think your point is well made. There’s no reason to do a thing that anybody can do. It’s the effort that makes doing a thing worthwhile. The risk of failure is what makes it noble.
Raise three kids. Oops, doing that without the guarantee!
“Some of my greatest accomplishments were born of failures.”
That’s much wisdom. I look at it from a manic-depressive point of view. My highest highs are relative to my lowest lows.
My current place in life is that much sweeter for the depths from which I had to drag myself to get here.
Build a compter out of coral, seashells, and coconuts.
Send an e-mail back to the mainland to rescue Gilligan, the Skipper and the Howells.
Ginger & MaryAnnn stay on the tropical paradise with me.
build the first and only computer that never crashes and doesn’t use MS Windows
ask Charlee to marry me…LOL
after that start my own business and retire somewhere and train and scuba all the time…
'what would you attempt if you knew you could not fail?’
I’d fly.