If you quit when you fail, you never move forward. At best, you stand still. To move two steps forward, usually means failing more than twice. It will feel like you you've moved giant leaps backwards at time. But failures are learning curves. As teachers we know this for our students, but often forget it for ourselves. That lesson plan that did not go according to plan doesn't mean don't try something new again, It can mean a couple of things: "This lesson needs to be tweaked for a, b, and c", or "That lesson just didn't work, but I now know not to bring the alpaca indoors. That is an outside activity."
By giving up on trying new things, you are not only impacting your own life's movement, but how your students view failure. It shows that failure is bad and wrong- something to avoid at all costs. We know better than that. Failure means learning from our mistakes, growing a stronger character, or ultimately finding success. This is the message students need. This is the message we need to remember for ourselves.
So take some chances. Small chances and know you might fail. This is the greatest opportunity to turn failure into learning. It's also an amazing opportunity to remember or learn for the first time, failure isn't the end.
It's just the beginning.
Thoughts and reflections for the month:
- What are some opportunities you have been a little too scared to take?
- Why are they scary?
- What small step can you take to move forward in one of those opportunities?
- What can you do the next time a student or yourself fails to show it's ok?
P.S. Thanks to my sister for being a beautiful model in the pictures above.
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