Even though we are all in college, it is OK to fail sometimes.
Now, I know what you’re probably thinking — studying at a university is much different than being back in high school where grades could be brought up easily and painlessly.
I am here to tell you that occasionally you will need to fail in order to improve. The way we handle this failure is what really matters in the long run.
As college students, there is so much pressure on us to never fail at anything we do.
We need to pass every one of our exams, we need to learn how to perfectly manage our time and we need to keep our cool while doing it all.
Some people may be experts at all of this, but I am most certainly not.
I have had my fair share of failures in my two years at Gannon.
I have failed tests, I have spent hours locked up in my room to get assignments done when I should have done them weeks before and I definitely have had a few good breakdowns along the way.
We need to remember that failures make us human.
No matter how hard we try, we are bound to slip up, and it is important to learn how to bounce back when it happens.
The worst thing students can do is give up after they fail. When you do this, you are giving yourself no chance to show that you are better than your mistakes.
You are not showing everyone around you, and yourself, how you can improve when you put the work in.
When you are faced with failure, the best thing you can do is to accept it and learn from it. Use your failures as a way to motivate yourself to do better. Use them as a way to improve and show everyone that you can work through hard times.
I think this is one of the most valuable pieces of advice people can hear as they enter into a new situation in life.
Whether you are just starting college, just starting a job or just trying something new, it is important to understand that you are most likely going to fail at some point.
Once you are able to accept that, you begin to be a lot less hard on yourself. This can mean your stress levels go down and you can focus on things that will help you succeed.
I believe that someone who improves and bounces back from a failure shows a significant amount of strength and motivation.
Getting knocked down can be hard, but getting back up is what really shows the character of a person.
So I’m not telling you to skip studying for that exam, but I am telling you that you will still succeed if you really set your mind to it.

HARLEE BOEHM
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