Focus on What You’ve Learned From Failure to Avoid Self-Criticism.
There is a reason failure stories are popular: they deserve attention. We all fall face down at some point, and the atonement stories are reassuring. However, it can be difficult to find a balance between discussing your failure and self-deprecation.
For example, you are often asked to discuss your failures in a job interview, and it’s easy to get pitying and too critical of yourself. The key to discussing failure, as writer Kat Bogaard points out, is to focus on what you’ve learned rather than the failure itself:
While you definitely want to answer the question directly and provide a logical explanation for the time you missed the mark, you should plan to continue this description with the lesson you have learned.
By flipping the script this way, you can accomplish two things. First, it demonstrates to your interviewee that – although you’ve gone through times when you felt less of a role model – you can use them to continually improve.
Second, it forces you to talk about those experiences in a more positive and constructive manner.
As Bogaard mentions, this does not mean that you have to completely give up your failure. It simply means that you are focusing on the solution and not berating yourself. To find out more, go to the full version of the message at the link below.
A Quick Guide to Talking About Your Failures Without Giving Up Self-Esteem | Muse