by James Garton

Created on: April 16, 2009

We as people learn by our failures, which develops our character and molds us for future success. To rob a child of failure is to rob them of the ingredients they need to be a success. Liberal educators, and sociologist want our kids to live in a unrealistic world where everyone is a winner. We as adults that live and work in the the real world that is not an academic utopia, know that success and failure are all a part of life and business.

Thomas Edison: Invented over one thousand products, and yet his school teacher called him dull, confused, and unable to learn.

Albert Einstein: This great thinker dropped out of school at the age of 15 and after spending half a year of doing nothing decided to return back to school.

Winston Churchill: The great leader during World War II failed the 6th grade.

Henry Ford: This great inventor, and business tycoon, failed and lost money with his first two attempts to start his car company.

Hewlett Packard: This high tech industry giant was devloped after it's founders suffered a series of failures. Bill Hewlett and Dave Packard's early failed products included a lettuce-picking machine and an electric weight-loss machine.

Educators have told parents for years that kids must have confidence and self esteem. Most parents would agree that confidence in your own ability is important. However, the problem is the method schools have used to build that confidence. It's an everyones a winner, no leaders, and no losers strategy, that parents view as harmful to their child's development.

Even sport teams have adopted this method of making everyone a winner regardless of your skills or efforts. Some little league teams have stopped keeping score, and issuing runner-up trophies. Sport teams have been penalized if they have too many wins. Parents who have bought into this way of thinking have protested, and assaulted coaches, and educators, when their child was not selected for certain positions or achievements.

Michael Jordan once said: "I've missed more than 9,000 shots in my career. I've lost almost 300 games. 26 times I've been trusted to take the game winning shot and missed. I've failed over and over and over again in my life and that is why I succeed."

Failure has developed many great men and woman, but the common factor all of them had was the spirit and character to pick themselves up from that failure, brush themselves off, and to move forward toward self perfection and development.

We can learn a lesson from nature, which is the example of the butterfly. When a Caterpillar is in a cocoon, and is ready to breakout as a butterfly,it must tear open and struggle to get free from the shell of the cocoon. The struggle to get free actually develops the wings of the butterfly so that when it does break free it has the strength to fly. If we try to interfere and help the butterfly get free, by opening up the cocoon, then we halt it's development which will prevent it from being able to take flight.

Like the struggles of a butterfly that gives birth to a new life, stumbling blocks, failure and struggle are the stepping stones a child must climb to reach success.

Learn more about this author, James Garton.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.