Epic Fail
I have failed. I have totally failed at my goal to start 2019 off right by blogging twice a week. Here we are three months in and I’m writing my first blog post of the year. Fail.
So, I thought it fitting that I recover from my failure with a blog post about failure. Part of the reason for my radio silence is because some new projects have been brewing. The first quarter of the year has been filled with new initiatives, new ideas, and new experiences. (Don’t worry, I’ll fill you in on some of them in future blog posts.) My favorite new project is a podcast about failure. Failure Bites.
Failure Bites
The Failure Bites Podcast, our latest NIU STEAM podcast, features successful people telling their stories of a difficult experience that helped them grown and learn. This podcast was the brainchild of my colleague, Kim Likier. Our team had been talking about the role of failure in learning from some time. We incorporate Failure-Based Learning into much of what we do. Kim suggested that we create a podcast that highlights personal stories of failure and success. A few collaborative meetings later and voila! Failure Bites was born.
We all have a failure story to tell. I told mine a year or so ago in a blog post for Coaching for Geeks. (You can read my failure story here.) I found the process very therapeutic. It was actually interesting to look at that experience through a lens of growth instead of failure. Our goal with this project is to celebrate the role that failure plays in success. We want to change the mindset that failing at something means you are a failure. It is the exact opposite. Failure and reflection are how we learn and grow. You can’t grow if you don’t take risks. When you take risks, you could fail. In this podcast, we are exploring the connection between failure and growth through personal stories.
We are four episodes in and so far I am loving this project. It has been truly inspiring to hear people from all over and from so many different backgrounds and fields talk about personal triumphs and the failures or challenges that got them there.
Listen to the most recent episode featuring filmmaker Tom Gustafson from Speak Productions. Tom tells his story of the challenges he faced making his first feature film. It was great to talk to Tom. He is my younger brother and I am truly inspired by all he and his partner have accomplished. I know that it has not been an easy road.
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Fail Forward
This whole project was a risk. We could have (and still could) fail. But that’s OK. Even if we get one person to think about failure differently, we have succeeded.
We have some great upcoming episodes in the queue. We’ll hear from a hugely successful author and an award-winning teacher. There are other new episodes in the works featuring some very exciting guests. We will also weave in some psychology experts to help us understand the effects of failure on our brain.
You can find Failure Bites on all of your favorite podcast platforms including iTunes, Stitcher, and SoundCloud.
Please subscribe and leave a comment. We would love to hear if one of the stories resonated with you or inspired you to keep going or take a risk. We would also love to hear your story.
So, take the bite out of failure. Take a risk and make a mistake. You might learn something new.