It's okay to fail!

When students are learning and creating it is not unheard of one to mess up, misunderstand, or overall make a mistake. For many of us the word "failure" can be our biggest fear, but one of the biggest concepts we focus on in the Makerspace is that it is okay to fail!

In the UNCG Makerspace failure means something else. To fail is to make our First Attempt In Learning. As adults we often forget that we too are life-long students, and that means we have to keep creating, trying, and learning from our mistakes.

This week in the Makerspace I took a stab at Tinkercad, an online program that allows students to design their own three dimensional projects and bring them to life on a 3-D printer. I first attempted to make a personalized pencil holder for my desk, but the walls of the container were far to thick and the bottom ended up getting cracked in transition. This is a great example of a F.A.I.L., my first attempt in learning something new! It is okay to make mistakes as it brings you one step closer to reaching your goal and learning from it in the process. My mathematics professor, Montana Smithey, says that every time you make a mistake your brain grows!

If you feel like learning something new, and maybe making your brain grow, come visit us in the UNCG Makerspace. We can F.A.I.L. together!

-Erin Burgner, MIR