Winning is fun, but it teaches you nothing. Failure is the best teacher in the world. Winning is a trophy, failing is an education.
Some of the toughest lessons that we face are from our failures. But it’s also these same failures that can provide the most useful lessons if we only allow them to be. I’m going to be brave to share with you one of the biggest failures and resulting lessons from my own life.
In 1990, I became certified as a Level 1 ski instructor by the Canadian Ski Instructors Alliance, which is the governing body for professional ski instructors here in Canada. I always wanted to become a Level 2 instructor. The abilities of a Level 2 ski instructor is considered to be a very respectable skiing level. So after a few years as a Level 1, I decided to take the Level 2 certification course.
The Level 2 ski instructor course turned out to be the most grueling course I have ever taken, as it was an intensive five-day program with both on snow and indoor sessions. The course conductors who were Level 4 instructors, were constantly evaluating us. Level 4s are considered ski gods here in Canada.
Once the course started, I quickly found that my ski technique on the ‘black diamond’ slopes, which are the steep ones, was not quite up to Level 2 standards. Also, my short radius turns were not considered strong enough. So as a result of these two weaknesses, I ended up failing the course.
