The Importance of Failure

The line, "learn from my mistakes" has often been been used as a cliche or a method to reconcile from wrongdoing. Our tongue-in-check heroes use it all the time. Politicians use this when caught doing...anything. Sports figures do it after breaking the law. CEO's said it during and after the bailouts. In Education, perfection is sought out and expected. The "f" word may as well end in "uck" around here as anything below a "C" (or satisfactory) is not acceptable. However, Paul Tough presented an article in the New York Times, "What if the Secret to Success is Failure?"


http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/18/magazine/what-if-the-secret-to-success-is-failure.html?pagewanted=all

This counters the whole "failure is not an option" line from NASA. A line borrowed in Alan M. Blankstein's "Failure Is Not an Option(TM): Six Principles That Guide Student Achievement in High-Performing Schools."

Again, "Balance" is the word of the post once again. Interesting, both approaches discuss the importance of individuals to possess certain character traits to achieve or maintain success: optimism, persistence and social intelligence. Students who excelled, whether in a high-achieving school or not, were able to recover from a bad grade and resolve to do better next time; they were able to bounce back from a fight with family or classmates; to persuade professors to give them help after class (or the help was offered).

In teaching technology, I offer yet another parallel - these are the same traits that those who achieve success with technology possess. Anyone who is learning new technology for the first time should remember and strive for optimism, persistence and social intelligence.

Optimism allows us to see one, five and ten years down the road and into the future. However, it also keeps us engaged in learning a new technology. Lose it and there is a long uphill battle with the technology in question. Maintaining optimism is not easy, but has a lot to do with persistence.

Persistence is more than "try, try again." The key to persistence is finding answers, trying new things, and breaking them only to put them back together. In other words, not letting failure stop everything and keep one from learning from mistakes. When one gets good at persistence, optimism is produced.

Social Intelligence is at new levels with social media. When we learn from our mistakes in adapting to a new technology it is usually at the heels of new information or knowledge. Our ability to search and locate the information or knowledge is essential. This type of intelligence is not a gene nor is it evolving in our brains - we all need help. This is where librarians, teachers, and peers become the most valuable pieces in the process.

Optimism, persistence and social intelligence mean absolutely nothing if people do not realize them and use these characteristics to their advantage. It starts from within as everyone and anyone can learn a new technology.