Failing Forward

Uncomfortable and unprepared. That's understandable. The typical new GED student would rather be almost anywhere except in a classroom. Most of them are forced by circumstances -- and the reality of needing the credential to find a job today -- to reenter a place (the classroom) with bad memories. In their eyes, classroom work is a slog through an incomprehensible mire, lectures drone on far too long, PowerPoint projects seem pointless, and the idea of actually passing test, much less a course, a semester or a program, seems a fantasy just left of the turn toward Neverland.

Yet here they sit. Askew in the seats, rarely facing you head on, their body language screams "Let me out of here!" Yet, something directed them here and keeps them in their seats. I give them a world of credit for that kind of courage. As they sit, a little more attentive if you can get their attention and trust, the GED orientation moves deliberately, mixing information about the test sequence with guides for student success. Most of them can attain the GED and move on to better job opportunities or college courses. They can succeed if they believe in that success and put in the time and the effort.

However, I know everything is not suddenly changed in their lives as if by a sprinkle of pixie dust. Disappointments and mistakes of the past need to be addressed. We owe the students that bit of reality. Everyone, absolutely everyone, makes mistakes and suffers the consequences. What's important is what happens next.

A few years ago, a colleague recommended I read John C. Maxwell, best-selling author and motivator, who says even positive, upbeat, successful people, the kind of people we admire for their resoluteness, have "a tough time learning how to see failure positively." Even the best of us, he says, fail at what we do. In his 2000 book, Failing Forward: Turning Mistakes into Stepping Stones for Success, Maxwell prescribes a Cinderella-like transformation of discouragement, mistakes, and failure into success. He calls that process "failing forward."

During the GED orientation, I list the many successful people who failed before they succeeded (Edison, Disney, J.K.Rowling -- the list goes on and on): persistence not brilliance is the key to success. Then, I pass out a list of the book's 15 stepping stones and ask students to chose which of those steps seem to make the most sense to them. Maxwell's steps include "Learn a new definition of failure," "Change yourself and your world changes," and "Manage the weakness that manages you." I write the steps students choose on the board and we talk about why the particular steps seemed relevant to them. It's a valuable discussion. These students know about failure and disappointment. They need to know what they need to do to right their academic ship.

Every time I present this exercise, I notice many students favor the last of Maxwell's 15 steps: "Get up, get over it, get going." To my students this means they can't rely on their past, on others, or on best wishes to succeed. I think they know that. That's why they are sitting in front of me starting work on their GED. I can help guide them, but they need to provide the motive power themselves.

Maxwell's book was probably written for self-help and business audiences, but I think his ideas also line up well for students. I tell my GED students there will be times when they feel discouraged, disheartened and want to give up. These feelings are natural for anyone who wants to push the boundaries of where they are into new unknown challenges. They will make mistakes. They will be discouraged. They will fail. There is nothing wrong with that.

The key point is what do they do after they pick themselves up and brush themselves off? How do they turn mistakes into success? How will they decide to "fail forward?"