How to Take Failures in Stride

Failure is something many university students dread above anything else. It could mean failing a test or an entire class, failing to reach a goal that mattered to you, or not succeeding at a new activity. But failure is a fact of life and something you’ll need to deal with long after you graduate. By learning to take failures in stride now, you can become a stronger person and better prepared to face adversity.

1. Take More Risks

You’ll never learn how to cope with failures unless you sometimes let yourself fail. Taking calculated risks is a great way to train yourself. In the best case scenario, you’ll achieve something you never thought you could do, whereas the worst outcome is a valuable learning experience — it’s a no-lose situation. The next time you have an opportunity to try an activity you have no idea if you’ll be good at, participate in a novel project, or become involved in a student business venture, go for it.

2. Don’t Allow Your Failures to Define You

Too many students worry that a failure will become part of who they are, not simply something they experienced. For instance, you don’t want to be known as the person who failed a particular class. In fact, most people are far too wrapped up in their own problems to care about judging you for yours. What will grab people’s attention, though, is if you manage to turn failure into success, such as graduating with a high GPA even though you struggled at many points during your time at university.

3. Move On

It’s normal to feel upset for a while after you fail, but wallowing will get you nowhere. Embrace the fact that you failed and commit to doing better next time. No one is infallible, and the fact that you failed is nothing to be ashamed of.

4. Acknowledge Your Feelings

After a failure, make sure you admit to yourself why you feel bad. It’s easy to hide the true reason from yourself to cope with the negative emotions — for instance, you may want to pretend that you never cared. This will only hurt you in the future because it will make you afraid to try new things. Plus, it will mean you won’t learn anything from the experience.

5. Learn to Innovate

Be proactive after a failure by working on an action plan to avoid making the same mistakes again. The worst thing you can do after a failure is to continue acting the same and hoping for a better outcome. Failure means you went wrong somewhere — you need to root out the problem and think about what you could do differently. This kind of thinking will help you with all aspects of your life, as it will teach you to search for creative solutions to problems.

Many students fail because they’re unable to study effectively while living on campus. The Revalie can provide you with Carleton off-campus housing where you can learn to overcome your failures and start succeeding. You’ll receive a fully-furnished, modern suite with a fast internet connection and 24-hour emergency maintenance available. Apply now to get more out of your student experience.