Heat Treat Today publishes eight print magazines a year and included in each is a letter from the publisher, Doug Glenn. This letter first appeared in Heat Treat Today's February 2022 Air and Atmosphere print edition.
Publisher and Founder
Heat Treat Today
I failed my Ham Radio Technicians test today. It was publicly humiliating and embarrassing.
It wasn’t that public — there were only four test takers and three proctors — but it was genuinely embarrassing and humiliating. I was ashamed. It is remarkable the impact this minor life failure has had on my mind and emotions all day!
The experience set me thinking about the upside of failing — the silver linings that are worth mentioning and might be helpful to someone reading.
Empathy
For those who have not failed frequently, it is important to remember that others experience it more frequently and that it is not fun. Failing isn’t enjoyable and when someone fails, we shouldn’t ignore the fact that it hurts emotionally, psychologically, mentally, and sometimes physically and financially. Depending on the failure, the pain can be intense and long-lasting or minor and transient. Nonetheless, it hurts, embarrasses, humiliates, and often brings shame.
A good, solid failure now and again reminders us of this fact and helps us be more empathetic.
Reality
Secondly, a good failure will remind us that life doesn’t always go as planned. It reminds us that we are not in control. Just as importantly, it reminds us that others’ lives don’t always go the way that they’ve planned. Failures happens to everyone — no exceptions.
Most of us have experienced relative ease. Our lives have been mostly successful with few failures. It is a reality unique to 20th- and 21st-century America that so many people have been so successful for so long — what Francis Schaeffer refers to as “personal peace and prosperity” in his classic video series and book How Should We Then Live? (available on YouTube). We should thank God for that, but failure is a reality, and we should not be surprised when we fail or when others fail. Best to remember that none of us are in control of our lives.
Initiative
Thirdly, people don’t tend to run toward situations where failure is probable. We tend to hightail it in the opposite direction. There is, however, a certain goodness in failing, especially when that failure comes from trying new things, stepping into new territory, or purposefully pushing ourselves beyond our comfort zones. In one sense, if we’re not failing, we’re not really trying. We’re coasting — and hopefully none of us are comfortable with coasting.
In the early days as the publisher of Industrial Heating magazine, back in the early 1990s, the CEO of BNP Media at that time, Jim Henderson, sent out a memo with a simple and impactful message. The memo — yes, a memo, not an email — essentially said (my paraphrase), “We’re not failing enough.” His point was simple — if we’re not failing, then we’re not trying new things and we need to be trying new things.
Failing can be painful, but there is no better indicator of initiative than failure. As Babe Ruth said, “Every strike brings me closer to the next home run.” Keep swinging!
Forgiveness
This last thought is a bit “Christian,” so if you’re not comfortable with some Christian talk, abandon ship now. (Not encouraging it; just giving fair warning!) There were three gentlemen administering the Ham Radio test that I failed today. It was striking to me how uncomfortable I felt when the three of them were openly grading the 35-question exam. I was surprised at how uncomfortable it was to have them judging my work and knowing that these three men were going to render a verdict on my performance. I was actually squirming in my chair — both figuratively and literally!
As a struggling Christian, my thoughts quickly turned to how much more uncomfortable it would be if there were Three other Persons (think “Trinity”: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit) evaluating my performance. In a small yet powerful way, it was one of the most tangible examples of the Judgment we’ll all experience . . . and, boy, am I super thankful for forgiveness. I can’t imagine having to answer for all my life failures before God without the reality of God’s forgiveness.
Our failures are forgivable, for which I’m extremely thankful.
