Learning to view “failure” as an important step on the road to success can be a critical part of achieving your goals. From entrepreneurs like Google’s co-founder Larry Page … to athletes like tennis star Serena Williams … many of today’s most successful people have discovered that failure is often what provides the essential feedback necessary to move forward in a more effective way.

As author Laura Gassner Otting points out, “failure should be a fulcrum rather than a finale.” Or as those familiar with the Montessori style of instruction would say, “there should be no failures or dead ends — just new questions to ask.”

On a related note, veteran teacher (and now professor) Missy Springsteen-Haupt suggests that we should embrace the inevitable missteps of early-career teaching and learn from (rather than hide) the inevitable failures that will occur.

And here’s an interesting take from Ana Lorena Fabrega on what we can learn from video games about the positive impact of failure … and how we might apply that to the classroom. The approach that she describes could also be applicable to educational leaders working with their staffs.

In short, the basic concept that “failure is a necessary part of success” is one that wise educational leaders need to understand and take to heart, especially in this era of increasing teacher burnout and the resulting shortage of qualified educators. And it’s an important lesson that they can share with their teachers and students.

BONUS: For inspiration, here’s a list of 50 famous people who failed over and over again on their way to becoming highly successful. One of these is Michael Jordon, who says “I missed over 9,000 shots in my career and lost almost 300 games. On 26 occasions, I was entrusted to take the game winning shot and I missed. So I have failed over and over and over again in my life. But that is why I succeeded!”