Learning through failure

Failure is an experience that almost everyone wants to avoid, yet it is also one of the most common parts of human development. Students fail tests, athletes lose competitions, businesses make unsuccessful decisions, scientists conduct experiments that do not produce the expected result, artists create work they later reject, friends misunderstand each other, and adults make choices that they would change if they had another opportunity. Because failure can create disappointment, embarrassment, frustration, or fear, people often treat it as evidence that something should never have been attempted. A student who receives a poor grade may think, “I am not good at this subject.” A person whose first job application is rejected may think, “Nobody will ever hire me.”…