SSC Based Reading Comprehensions-1B- Every Success Story is Also a Story of Great Failures

Every Success Story is Also a Story of Great Failures 

Reading Comprehension 1

Failure is the highway to success. Tom Watson Sr. said, “If you want to succeed, double your failure rate.”

If you study history, you will find that all stories of success are also stories of great failures. But people don’t see the failures. They only see one side of the picture and they say that person got lucky: “He must have been at the right place at the right time.”

1. According to Tom Watson Sr., what is the approach to succeed?

a) Avoid failure at all costs

b) Embrace failure and learn from it

c) Seek luck and opportunity

Answer: b) Embrace failure and learn from it

2. What do people often overlook when they perceive someone as successful?

a) The person's failures

b) The person's dedication and hard work

c) The person's luck and timing

Answer: a) The person's failures

3. What do stories of success often include, according to the passage?

a) Moments of luck and chance

b) Great achievements and triumphs

c) A history of failures and setbacks

Answer: c) A history of failures and setbacks

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Reading Comprehension 2

A New York Times editorial on December 10, 1903, questioned the wisdom of the Wright Brothers who were trying to invent a machine, heavier than air, that would fly. One week later, at Kitty Hawk, the Wright Brothers took their famous flight.

1. What did a New York Times editorial question on December 10, 1903?

a) The intelligence of the Wright Brothers

b) The possibility of inventing a flying machine

c) The wisdom of inventing a machine heavier than air

Answer: c) The wisdom of inventing a machine heavier than air

2. Where did the Wright Brothers take their famous flight?

a) New York City

b) Kitty Hawk

c) The New York Times headquarters

Answer: b) Kitty Hawk

3. What was the main focus of the Wright Brothers' invention?

a) Creating a machine that could swim underwater

b) Inventing a machine lighter than air that would fly

c) Designing a machine for land transportation

Answer: b) Inventing a machine lighter than air that would fly

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Reading Comprehension 3

Colonel Sanders, at age 65, with a beat-up car and a $100 cheque from social Security, realized he had to do something. He remembered his mother's recipe and went out selling. How many doors did he have to knock on before he got his first order? It is estimated that he had knocked on more than a thousand doors before he got his first order. How many of us quit after three tries, ten tries, a hundred tries, and then we say we tried as hard as we could?

1. How old was Colonel Sanders when he realized he had to do something?

a) 55

b) 60

c) 65

Answer: c) 65

2. How much money did Colonel Sanders have when he decided to take action?

a) $10

b) $50

c) $100

Answer: c) $100

3. How many doors did Colonel Sanders estimate he had to knock on before he got his first order?

a) More than a hundred doors

b) More than a thousand doors

c) More than ten thousand doors

Answer: b) More than a thousand doors

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Reading Comprehension 4

One day a partially deaf four year old kid came home with a note in his pocket from his teacher, "Your Tommy is too stupid to learn, get him out of the school." His mother read the note and answered, "My Tommy is not stupid to learn, I will teach him myself." And that Tommy grew up to be the great Thomas Edison. Thomas Edison had only three months of formal schooling and he was partially deaf.

1. How old was Tommy when his teacher sent a note saying he was too stupid to learn?

a) Two years old

b) Four years old

c) Six years old

Answer: b) Four years old

2. How much formal schooling did Thomas Edison receive?

a) Three years

b) Three months

c) Three weeks

Answer: b) Three months

3. What was one of Thomas Edison's challenges?

a) Partial blindness

b) Partial deafness

c) Learning disability

Answer: b) Partial deafness

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Reading Comprehension 5

All success stories are stories of great failures. The only difference is that every time they failed, they bounced back. This is called failing forward, rather than backward.

You learn and move forward. Learn from your failure and keep moving.

1. What is the term used to describe the process of learning from failure and moving forward?

a) Failing backward

b) Failing forward

c) Failing sideways

Answer: b) Failing forward

2. What is the common characteristic of all success stories mentioned in the passage?

a) They have no failures

b) They bounce back from failure

c) They never experience setbacks

Answer: b) They bounce back from failure

3. What is the suggested approach to failure according to the passage?

a) Give up and move on

b) Avoid failure at all costs

c) Learn from failure and keep moving

Answer: c) Learn from failure and keep moving

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Reading Comprehension 6

In 1914, Thomas Edison, at age 67, lost his factory, which was worth a few million dollars, on fire. It had very little insurance. No longer a young man, Edison watched his lifetime effort go up in smoke and said, "There is great value in disaster. All our mistakes are burnt up. Thank God we can start anew." In spite of the disaster, three weeks later, he invented the phonograph. What an attitude!

1. How old was Thomas Edison when he lost his factory in a fire?

a) 57

b) 67

c) 77

Answer: b) 67

2. What was Thomas Edison's response to the loss of his factory?

a) Despair and giving up

b) Gratitude for the opportunity to start anew

c) Anger and frustration

Answer: b) Gratitude for the opportunity to start anew

3. What invention did Thomas Edison create just three weeks after the fire?

a) Phonograph

b) Light bulb

c) Telephone

Answer: a) Phonograph

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Reading Comprehension 7

Setbacks are inevitable in life. A setback can act as a driving force and also teach us humility. In grief you will find courage and faith to overcome the setback. We need to learn to become victors, not victims. Fear and doubt short-circuit the mind.

Ask yourself after every setback: What did I learn from this experience? Only then you will be able to turn a stumbling block into a stepping stone.

The motivation to succeed comes from the burning desire to achieve a purpose. Napoleon Hill wrote, "Whatever the mind of man can conceive and believe the mind can achieve.

1. According to the passage, setbacks can teach us which of the following?

a) Arrogance and complacency

b) Humility and resilience

c) Fear and doubt

Answer: b) Humility and resilience

2. What does the passage suggest we should ask ourselves after every setback?

a) Why did this happen to me?

b) Who is to blame for this setback?

c) What did I learn from this experience?

Answer: c) What did I learn from this experience?

3. According to Napoleon Hill, what is necessary for achieving success?

a) Logical reasoning and analysis

b) External support and resources

c) A burning desire and belief in one's ability

Answer: c) A burning desire and belief in one's ability

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Reading Comprehension 8

A young man asked Socrates the secret to success. Socrates told the young man to meet him near the river the next morning. They met. Socrates asked the young man to walk with him toward the river. When the water got up to their neck, Socrates took the young man by surprise and ducked him into the water. The boy struggled to get out but Socrates was strong and kept him there until theboy started turning blue. Socrates pulled his head out of the water and the first thing the young man did was to gasp and take a deep breath of air. Socrates asked, “What did you want the most when you were there?” The boy replied, "Air." Socrates said, "That is the secret to success. When you want success as badly as you wanted the air, then you will get it." There is no other secret.

A burning desire is the starting point of all accomplishment. Just like a small fire cannot give much heat, a weak desire cannot produce great results.

1. What did Socrates do to the young man when they were near the river?

a) Asked him to swim across the river

b) Engaged in a philosophical conversation

c) Dunked him into the water

Answer: c) Dunked him into the water

2. According to Socrates, what did the young man want the most when he was underwater?

a) Success

b) Air

c) Help

Answer: b) Air

3. What is the starting point of all accomplishment, according to the passage?

a) A burning desire

b) Knowledge and skills

c) External resources and support

Answer: a) A burning desire