The Last Attempt

Rahim stood in front of the small tea stall, drenched in sweat, dust clinging to his clothes. He had just come from another failed job interview — the third one this week. The stall owner handed him a glass of lukewarm tea.

"Another no?" he asked.

Rahim nodded silently.

At 29, Rahim felt like a failure. He had graduated top of his class five years ago, full of dreams and ambition. But life had different plans. His father passed away unexpectedly, and Rahim had to take care of his younger sister and mother. Every time he tried to stand up, life seemed to knock him down harder.

"Why does life always test those who try the hardest?" he muttered to himself.

An old man sitting nearby overheard him. With wrinkled hands and tired eyes, he looked at Rahim and said, “Do you know how many times Thomas Edison failed before inventing the lightbulb?”

Rahim shook his head.

“Over a thousand times,” the old man replied. “But he didn’t say he failed. He said he found a thousand ways that didn’t work. That’s the difference.”

Rahim smiled faintly, but the weight on his shoulders was too heavy for words to lift.

That night, back at his tiny rented room, Rahim stared at the ceiling fan spinning lazily above. “Maybe this is it,” he thought. “Maybe I’m not meant to succeed.”

Then he remembered his sister's words from a few nights ago: "Bhai, one day you’ll make it. I believe in you more than anyone."

And in that moment, he made a decision.

He wouldn’t stop now.

---

The next morning, Rahim took a different approach. He stopped applying to big companies and started knocking on doors of small startups. He offered to work for free for a month, just to prove himself.

Most said no. But one said yes.

It was a dusty little office with four employees and a broken ceiling fan. The founder, Ahsan, liked Rahim’s honesty and determination.

“You’ll start tomorrow,” he said. “No promises. Show me what you can do.”

For the next 30 days, Rahim worked like a machine. He cleaned the office, answered emails, designed marketing material, and even brought lunch from home to save money. Every night he walked home tired, but proud.

At the end of the month, Ahsan called him into his office.

“You’re not just good,” Ahsan said. “You’re exactly what we need.”

He offered Rahim a full-time job with a decent salary.

Rahim’s hands trembled as he took the letter. “Thank you,” he whispered, tears welling up in his eyes.

---

Three years later, Rahim was the company’s marketing head. He helped the startup grow into a million-dollar business with offices in two cities. He paid off his family’s debts, sent his sister to college, and bought his mother a new home.

At the company’s annual event, Ahsan asked Rahim to speak.

Standing on stage, Rahim looked out at the young interns in the crowd and said:

"I was once sitting where you are. Tired. Hopeless. Ready to quit. But I didn’t. I tried one more time. That last attempt changed my life."

He paused, looked at Ahsan, then continued.

"Sometimes, success isn’t about being the smartest or the most talented. It’s about not giving up when everyone else does."

---

Moral of the story:

Never underestimate the power of “one more try.” Your breakthrough might be hiding behind the next door you’re about to knock on.