Teenagers in Taiwan fear failure. They view success as the most important thing in the world whereas failure is something they should try their best to avoid.
Teens fear failure so much because parents and teachers teach them that they have to be perfect. This fear of failure is unhealthy. Teens need to stop fearing failure since perfection is both impossible to achieve and unnecessary. Not all failures are bad. There are certain types of failures that teens should embrace because they can grow from them.
Failures that teens should embrace
Teens need to know what kinds of failures to embrace, such as failing a test, or minor friendship problems. These are “failures” that teens should not fear because they are small conflicts in life that are learning opportunities. The most important thing about failure is about learning from what you did wrong.
Failing is good for teens
Failing can be painful and shameful, but it is an experience that allows people to grow and identify their strengths and weaknesses. Failure is a crucial learning opportunity that allows kids to become more resilient and aware of their abilities.
Failure encourages growth and resilience
When kids fail, they learn to grow and become more resilient and to identify where they can improve.
For example, my friend, Serena, used to fear messing up when speaking in front of a large crowd. She often panicked before speaking. However, she forced herself to practice public speaking. Despite having made some bad speeches, she kept trying. Serena is now able to speak in front of large crowds because she has been through a lot of failures and grew from them. She has embraced the failure of messing up in public speaking, so she is able to benefit from those experiences.
Failure encourages self-awareness
When teens fail, they can find the areas for improvement and become more aware of their weaknesses and strengths. For example, when you fail a test you will be able to know which part of the test you did wrong. Without failures, teens will never know where they can improve, nor will they have a reason to improve, which prevents teens from becoming the best version of themselves.
Overcoming the fear of failure
There are many ways to overcome the fear of failure. One of the best ways to do so is to be aware of why you “failed”.
Know what you did right
When trying to overcome your fear of failure, you should acknowledge what you did right even when you fail. For example, getting 50 percent on a test is a pretty big fail. However, you still got 50 percent right even though you failed the test. Knowing what you did right is important because it prevents you from being overcritical of yourself.
Reflect on what you did wrong
Reflecting on what you did wrong is even more important than knowing what you did right. Reflecting does not mean that you should beat yourself up over what you messed up on. It means that you need to be aware of the factors that led to your failure and try to find a solution to improve.
For example, after you understand where you failed on a test, you will immediately know where you need to improve. After seeing where you need to improve, you need to start developing strategies for how to improve. With this process, teens will be able to grow and avoid worse mistakes in the future.
–
Failure is inevitable. Every single person will encounter failure at some point in their life. Failure is a process that teens should not fear because without it, teens would not be able to learn about themselves.
Parents should learn to accept their teen’s imperfections and guide them on the right path to improve. A parent’s guidance can serve as a powerful form of motivation to assist a teen to become a better version of themselves.
Overcoming the fear of failure can be challenging but it is worth facing.
As a student and a teacher I have learnt more from my mistakes than I have from my failures. It sounds clichéd, but without failure we don’t truly learn things. Failure is a necessary part of education.