Question: Have you ever failed at something which meant a lot to you?

Eleanor Sherwen answered on 10 Mar 2016:

When I was at University I decided to take Mechatronics (using electronics to make mechanical systems) as a subject in my final year, because my practical electronics had always been weak and I knew I would need it in industry (loads of stuff has electronics in it these days). I was very good at the theory, totally useless at actually wiring anything up. I put a lot of time into it but in the first term it was awful, none of the practical work made sense to me. My first project went completely wrong, and I got an E- which is my worst grade ever at anything. I was SO upset and thought I was going to fail the whole module.

But when I thought about it, I picked apart all the points I’d gone wrong: I didn’t know the “simple” practical rules that don’t get covered in theory, I didn’t play and experiment on breadboard enough, and I fell into the trap of trying to make the whole circuit at once, instead of making and testing little bits and then joining them up. The next term, I was very cautious, I asked other students for lots of tips, and I made sure I made a prototype every week and kept it, so I wouldn’t loose all the marks if the next bit went wrong. I finally managed to get my head around it! I didn’t fail! It was tough, but it turns out I did make the right choice in the end.

Now I am not scared of a bit of electronics here and there, I know I can handle it. But I always ask someone who is an electronics expert to check my work.