Well folks, this is it. This is the last time you will be hearing from VP Ed, Dthomps edition. There comes a time when every man or woman must bid farewell. The good, the bad, the successes, the failures – we take it all in stride. Which leads to the topic I wish to discuss today. Failure. This aspect of life has been a common conversation topic amongst many of the circles I have been a part of in the fall term. The issue is that many individuals of the current generation have yet to truly experience a significant failure in their lives. This can lead to a group of people that simply do not know how to deal with this sort of setback.
I was once told of a study that has been conducted on this very topic. In the study, a number of people (split into two groups) were given a very easy math test. One group was praised for their hard work. The other group was praised for the outcome (final grade). Both groups performed well on the easy test. The groups were then given a more difficult test. Both groups failed spectacularly. Following this defeat, the participants were given a test that resembled the first, simple test. The outcome of this was quite striking. Those participants that had been praised for the good grades were incapable of performing on the third test. Those participants that had been praised for their hard work performed admirably on their third (simple) test.
What is the takeaway from this? Put in the effort required to pass, to succeed. Put in the effort and praise yourself for the hard work you do. Don’t look at the outcome as the be all end all. Sometimes, even if you give something your all, you simply will not get what you want. But if you try sometimes, you just might find, you get what you need.
As always in engineering, work hard, play hard. Signing off, Derek Thompson. Cheers, folks. See you at the bar. Alcohooooolllllll!!!!
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