What is the message presented in the poem "If" by Rudyard Kipling?

s wonderful
poem If supplies a guide for how to live an honorable, successful life.  Written in 1895, the
principles that Kipling present still apply to todays world.  His intuitive solutions to lifes
problems have no time, gender, or age.

The poem is written in four stanzas
with only two sentences.  The first sentence ends at the end of the third stanza and the second
sentence ends at the end of the poem. Each stanza has eight lines. The poem is written in first
and second person.  His use of you makes the poem seem as though it is addressed directly to
the reader.

1st stanza

The word if
begins every stanza and establishes a condition that the poet assumes that the person will face
in life. The first stanza focuses on self-confidence.  Trust in ones own abilities. A person may
be blamed and doubted; it does not matter if the person knows the truth.  Keep an even keel in
whatever happens.  Be patient.  Do not listen to lies or work with those who do not tell the
truth.  Hate must never be a part of a mans life.  In addition, never try to show off or be
arrogant in talking to others.  

2nd stanza

A man should dream, but he can live on just his dreams.  He must act. Thoughts and
thinking are important as well; but there is more to life.

 If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster
And treat those two impostors just
the same:

Winning is easy.  Losing is
hard. Both aspects of life are faced by a person. A man must learn how to handle both situations
with grace and go on with his life. 

Sometimes a person learns that people
will twist what a person has said and use it against him.  A man may also have something that he
has built torn down by fools.  The only thing to do is to kneel down and use whatever tools he
has and rebuild what has been broken

3rd
 Stanza

Risk and loss are a part of life. If a person risks
everything he has and loses in some foolish game, the only thing to do is  start over again. 
Never give up and never discuss the loss with anyone.  It is only the individuals
business.

A person sometimes has to work beyond his physical capabilities. 
It is his responsibility to work until the goal is gained. There is something in man that
propels him forward if he has the will to hold on.

4th
Stanza

When a man talks in the midst of men, he should not give up
his integrity. If he walks among nobility, he must never forget who he is. Pride and conceit are
sins.  A man will have friends and enemies, but he must never allow them to harm him.  Other
people should be an important part of the a mans life, but never depend on any one man too
much.

Time must never be wasted.  Every minute of every day is important.
Never be idle and squander time. If a person can live the life prescribed, everything that a
person wants will come to him. In addition, a person will be hailed as a true and good
man.