Failures, or Teachable Moments?

Everyone has not-so-positive defining moments in their lives when things just do not go as planned. You dropped the ball. You made the same mistake - again, perhaps for the fifth time. Begrudgingly, you take the blame, lectures, scolding, and criticism that you know is coming from others who have witnessed your series of unfortunate fumbles before. You sink into a funk, knowing that you have messed up big time, but promise yourself and others that it will never happen again. Sound familiar?

Mistakes do and will happen. You may oversleep and miss a class or forget to speak on an important concept in a business meeting. Maybe you have overextended yourself and promised that you could be in two places at the same time on the same day. These occurrences, although an irritance, are not life altering. But if these patterns continue to repeat themselves, you are no longer making mistakes but are developing habits that will make or break you, your relationships, and how you interact with the rest of the world. Sometimes these habits can be ingrained or relatively novel due to changes in functioning. 

Consider a change in perspective. Instead of internalizing “I have made a mistake” think about “How can I improve on this outcome?”. “What led me here and how can I correct it?”. Switching from a reactive to a proactive frame of mind is not always easy, especially if you are someone who is challenged by:

• Awareness of strengths and weaknesses 
• Introspection or processing of thoughts and feelings 
• Impulsive decision-making 
• Reduced initiation to start or finish tasks 
• Attention to details or big picture concepts

In order to change perceived failures into teachable moments, you have to be willing to address where your current skill set is in the area you’re trying to improve on, identify if that skill set is adequate or needs improvement, and search for strategies or mechanisms that can help you gain greater understanding of your needs and how to use them in a manner that supports you. 

Sometimes it can be challenging to determine what you excel in and what areas need more work, especially if you’re not including time in your day to think critically about how you approach work, school, and community life. 

That’s what Cognition, Speech & Language specializes in. Let us be of help to you and make experiences approachable, teachable, and easier to learn from. 

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