You learn a lot about yourself being in an aviation "incident". I've been studying to get my private pilot's license, and on the third landing of my first solo flight, I landed fine, and then my left brake locked up. The plane ran off the runway and hit a sign. Jumping out of the cockpit and looking at my plane with it's destroyed propeller and chipped wing was one of the sickest feelings I've ever felt.

I learned that my number one fear is not death. As I was headed towards the inevitable, I was not thinking of death, although I could have easily died. Instead, I was thinking of how I was going to explain that to my dad. Death, I though, would probably be a better fate than whatever devious hell he would send me to once he found out about it.

After the incident, I learned just how tough I was. I was tempted to quit, to stop flying right then and there, so I would never have to look at another aircraft broken by my mistake again. But I refused to quit. If it doesn't kill me, it makes me stronger. I became more determined to learn to fly, more determined to become a good pilot. And now that I have beaten flight training and the odds arrayed against me, I'm glad I kept going. Overcoming a setback gives a great sense of pride, one much more powerful than the sick feeling of a failed step along the way.

Never do anything half way. Regret is worse than failing, while there's no shame in quitting as soon as you realize something's not right for you. 100% or nothing, with no stops in between.