Get Up Close and Comfortable with Being a Failure

Throughout our lives, we are taught that failing is something that is not accepted by society for

various reasons. Since our first day of school, teachers tell us that there is only one right answer

to questions asked with no room for other solutions. For decades this is what’s considered to

be “learning” when it’s not. We are essentially copy information that is “taught” to us and

pasting it on a piece of paper. To gain experiences and life lesson we must attempt to solve the

problem with the expectation of real consequences. These so-called consequences are never

going away and will be there regardless of where you’re at in your life. Only when we fail with

real consequences, an opportunity for learning will arise from the ashes. These opportunities

help us grow and should not be taken lightly. Getting comfortable with failure is the first step to

real learning. The fear of failure is something that I have struggled with my entire life. Working

towards that comfortability will be a lifelong battle. If we aren’t comfortable, then all we have

left is the ability to show what we are told, not what we have learned. Every time failure enters

your life, you take one step closer to failing with comfort.

By: Timothy M. Eltschlager Jr (T.J.)

Hometown: Toledo, Ohio

Major: Finance (Major) & Entrepreneurship (Minor)

Year: Senior

Fun Fact: I interned for Ford Motor Company in Product Development as a Material Cost

Finance Intern, and I eat an average of six eggs per day.

Keywords: Lessons, Experiences, Consequences