Failure is often celebrated as a necessary step toward success. We’ve all heard the saying that mistakes are the best teachers. But is that really true in practice? A fascinating study conducted in 2019 sheds light on how people respond to failure, Why Failure Doesn’t Always Teach Us What We Think, why it can sometimes hold us back, and what really helps us grow.
The Rune Experiment: Success and Failure by Design
In 2019, researchers designed a study with over 400 participants. The task seemed simple: learn a made-up language based on mysterious runes. Participants were asked to identify rune pairs, such as choosing which symbol represented an animal.
After a short break, the questions were flipped. Instead of asking which rune meant an animal, participants had to say which one represented a non-living object. On the surface, this looked like a fair test of memory and reasoning. But there was a twist.
In the first round, participants weren’t actually being tested on their knowledge. Instead, their answers were predetermined. Some were told they got everything right, no matter what. Others were forced to fail every question. That meant when round two began, everyone had the same amount of information. The only difference was whether they had previously “succeeded” or “failed.”
The results were striking. Those who were told they had succeeded earlier kept performing better, while those labeled as failures continued to struggle. This experiment revealed something powerful: our relationship with failure can shape future performance, even when our actual ability is the same.
The Emotional Weight of Failure
Why did the failure group continue to stumble? The answer lies in how failure affects our emotions and self-image.
Most people want to see themselves as capable and intelligent. When we fail, especially in a public or official setting, it threatens that self-image. In a follow-up survey to the rune study, participants who were forced to fail reported much lower levels of self-confidence.
It’s easy to say that failure is just a temporary setback. But research shows the impact can go much deeper. When people feel demoralized, their brains often reduce the effort to process new information. In other words, if failure is too overwhelming, it can actually shut down our ability to learn.
The Role of Motivation and Context
Not all failure feels the same. How we react often depends on our relationship with the task. A 2011 study on American students learning French illustrates this point.
Both beginner and advanced learners were asked what kind of teacher they preferred. Beginners leaned toward instructors who highlighted their strengths and gave positive reinforcement. In contrast, advanced students wanted teachers who pointed out their mistakes and corrected their weaknesses.
This difference makes sense. Beginners are still exploring whether they enjoy learning the language and may need encouragement to stay motivated. Advanced students, already invested, want to refine their skills and know that mistakes are part of the path to mastery. Over time, they’ve built a higher tolerance for failure.
Why Success Often Teaches More Clearly
Even though failure can offer lessons, success is often a more straightforward teacher. Think about receiving an exam grade.
- If you scored well, it’s easy to conclude that your study habits worked. You can repeat those strategies with confidence.
- If you failed, the reasons could be endless. Maybe you studied the wrong material, didn’t study enough, or maybe the test was unfair. Because failure has so many possible causes, it doesn’t always point you to a clear path forward.
This ambiguity is one of the biggest barriers to learning from mistakes. Success, on the other hand, often reinforces specific actions and provides a clearer roadmap for repetition.
Balancing Failure and Success in Growth
Of course, this doesn’t mean failure has no value. Building resilience and maintaining a growth mindset are essential for long-term progress. The challenge lies in how we interpret failure.
Dwelling too much on mistakes can make us forget the things we did right. A more balanced approach is to use failures as signals—opportunities to adjust—while continuing to build on strengths and repeat successful strategies.
For example, an athlete may review a poor performance to spot weaknesses, but they also rely heavily on replaying their best games to understand what worked. Similarly, students and professionals alike benefit from recognizing achievements as much as correcting errors.
Rethinking the Role of Mistakes
The common belief that “failure is the best teacher” is only partly true. What really matters is how failure interacts with motivation, confidence, and context. For some, failure sparks determination. For others, it creates discouragement that blocks future learning.
The 2019 rune study proves that the labels of success and failure can shape our trajectory even when ability is equal. Success builds momentum, while failure can trap people in a cycle of doubt. That doesn’t mean we should avoid mistakes, but it does remind us to treat them carefully—especially when teaching or mentoring others.
Final Thoughts
Failure can teach us lessons, but it doesn’t guarantee growth. Often, success provides clearer and more reliable guidance. The real key is balance. Encouragement keeps us motivated, failure tolerance helps us adapt, and resilience ensures we don’t give up.
Rather than glorifying failure on its own, we should recognize the role both successes and failures play in the learning process. After all, progress doesn’t come from stumbling endlessly. It comes from knowing when to correct course and when to keep building on what already works.
