"Safety is No Accident"
My father was a veteran light aircraft instructor. His advice to me was "If you're going to hit anything, make sure you're under control and the wings are level"
In other words, do not stall/spin as they are often the fatalities near the ground.
He was always keen on using the full length for take off and he was totally opposed to turning back when faced with an engine failure after take off - recall him falling out with a CFS instructor over this that came to examine the instructors at the school to teach the flying scholarship cadets (btw he passed the check!).
The other bit of advice he often said was "You're much better down here wishing you were up there than up there wishing you were down here".