One of the secrets of life is to make stepping stones out of stumbling blocks.

The aphorism frames adversity as raw material for progress: the same obstacle that trips you can be repurposed as support for the next step. Its “secret of life” phrasing suggests a learned, practical wisdom rather than a theoretical ideal—an attitude of resilience and creative reframing. By pairing “stumbling blocks” (hindrances) with “stepping stones” (aids), it emphasizes agency: outcomes depend not only on what happens but on how one responds. The line has become a widely repeated motivational maxim because it compresses a growth mindset—learning from failure, converting setbacks into experience—into a vivid, memorable metaphor.