Get All Access for $5/mo

The Best Way to Improve from Failure Is to Feel the Pain Dwelling on failure will actually help you improve your mindset, according to a study.

By Rose Leadem

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

Shutterstock

What's the best way to handle failure? Feel the pain.

That's right, instead of simply recalling past mistakes and thinking about how to prevent them, a recent study found that going through the emotional pain of failing is the best approach for correcting your mistakes and preventing failures at a later time.

Related: 6 Proven Strategies to Rebound From Failure

Researchers from Ohio State, University of Kansas and Stanford conducted multiple experiments to uncover the most long-lasting and effective ways for people to deal with failures. They found that the pain failing causes has a more impactful effect compared to simply reflecting on a failure, which often does not involve thinking about ways to avoid similar mistakes.

In one experiment, the researchers asked 98 students to price search online for a blender. The person who found the lowest price would be deemed the winner and receive a cash prize. Before the winner was announced, half of the participants were instructed to focus on their emotions whether they won or lost, while the other half was told to focus on their thoughts over how they performed. In the end, the task was "rigged," and all the students lost. The students were told to write down their experiences after each task.

Related: Learning From Failure Is What Makes Entrepreneurs Better Leaders

In the same experiment, to find out if the students had improved and learned from the failure, researchers gave the participants an opportunity at redemption. However, the researchers also wanted to see if students would make the same mistake completing a similar task vs. a completely different task.

While some students were still told to focus on their thoughts and others their emotions, this time, half the students were given another price-related task and told to look for the most inexpensive book to gift for a friend. The other half was given a new task to find any book they thought would be the best gift for a friend. As a result, the students completing the price-related task who were focused on their emotions spent 25 percent more time -- and hence, were more motivated -- searching for the lowest-priced book, compared to students focused on their thoughts. All of the students tasked with finding the "best gift" did not show any difference.

"When the participants focused on how bad they felt about failing the first time, they tried harder than others when they had another similar opportunity," explained Ohio State professor and study co-author Selin Malkoc. "But the situation has to be similar enough to trigger the pain of the initial failure."

To understand why students who simply thought about failure did not try to work harder to correct their mistakes, researchers found that those people were more protective of their egos. By looking at what they wrote down about the experience, most of their thoughts were excuses such as "This wasn't my fault" rather than self improvement-focused, for example, "I can do better next time."

Related: 3 Ways to Make Your Next Failure a Learning Opportunity

In another experiment, researchers did not instruct participants on how to respond to failure -- it was up to them to take either the emotional or cognitive routes. By default, a majority of participants thought about failure, and these thoughts were again self-protective rather than self-improvement based.

"Emotional responses to failure can hurt. They make you feel bad. That's why people often choose to think self-protective thoughts after they make mistakes," Malkoc said. "But if you focus on how bad you feel, you're going to work harder to find a solution and make sure you don't make the same mistake again."

Related: 3 Stories on Bouncing Back From Failure

Rose Leadem is a freelance writer for Entrepreneur.com. 

Want to be an Entrepreneur Leadership Network contributor? Apply now to join.

Side Hustle

At Age 15, He Used Facebook Marketplace to Start a Side Hustle — Then It Became Something Much Bigger: 'Raised Over $1.6 Million'

Dylan Zajac, now a 21-year-old senior at Babson College, wanted to bridge the digital divide.

Business News

OpenAI Just Released Its Text-to-Video Generator, Sora. Here's How the New AI Could Impact Small Businesses and Creators.

Sora has a variety of use cases for businesses, from social media campaigns to video creation.

Productivity

6 Habits That Help Successful People Maximize Their Time

There aren't enough hours in the day, but these tips will make them feel slightly more productive.

Franchise

McDonald's Announces the Return of the Snack Wrap in 2025 — Here's What to Expect From Its Comeback

The decision comes after years of persistent customer demand for the portable snack, which debuted nearly two decades ago.

Side Hustle

'I Just Hustled': She Earned More Than $300,000 Wrapping Gifts Last Year — and It All Started With a Side Hustle

When Michelle Hensley lost her husband to cancer, she needed to figure out how to earn an income for her family.

Growing a Business

This Cozy Coffee and Garden Shop Has Become a Staple in Its Community By Following 5 Smart Strategies

Maypop is a combination coffee and garden shop where a blend of community building and customer service creates an unforgettable experience.