LEARNING FROM FAILURE

Failure Is Success If You Learn From It

Famed martial artist Bruce Lee once said, "I fear not the man who has practiced 10,000 kicks once, but I fear the man who has practiced one kick 10,000 times." His words capture a key part of a growth mindset: the value of practice and repetition. Learning something new often means struggling, failing, and trying again—many times.

Having a growth mindset doesn’t mean you’ll never fail. It means you see failure as the start of a journey, not the end. Some journeys are short and smooth. Others are long and difficult. But with the right mindset, you know that if you keep going, you’ll get there.

The Role of Positive Self-Talk

Self-talk is the inner voice in your head. What you say to yourself throughout the day can be encouraging, doubtful, critical, or supportive. Failure can be frustrating, and our self-talk in those moments can be very negative. We often put ourselves down, and this makes us want to give up. That's why it is important to learn to shift to positive self-talk during difficult moments.

​Positive self-talk means speaking to yourself in a kind and supportive way. It can help you stay motivated, face challenges, and build confidence. Instead of saying, “I’ll never get this right,” positive self-talk sounds like, “This is tough, but I can figure it out if I keep trying.”

A fixed mindset says, "I can't do this," but a growth mindset says, "I can't do this YET." Here are a few other positive self-talk switches to help you think with a growth mindset in the face of failures and challenges:

Self-Reflection: The Key to Learning from Failure

When you experience a setback, it can be frustrating, but with a little self-reflection, a failure can lead to your next success. 
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IMPORTANT: Self-reflection is also the key to learning from success, so you can also complete these reflection activities after something has gone really well to help you keep building on that success. 

Reflection Activities

Journal Prompt:
  1. Describe a time when you made a mistake or did something that you regret. Try to record all the important details about the situation.
  2. What was the mistake that you made?
  3. Why do you think you made this mistake?
  4. How did making this mistake make you feel?
  5. If you could go back in time and correct your mistake, what would you do differently?
  6. What did you learn from reflecting on this experience?

Or try this activity: