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In today's motivational literature, failure is often viewed as something to be celebrated. Inspirational speakers are fond of quoting the words of the novelist Samuel Beckett-"Fail again. Fail better. " It seems that disappointments are an essential stepping stone to success, a turning point in our life story that will ultimately end in victory.

However, psychological researches find most of us struggle to handle failure constructively. In other words, we fail to "fail forward". We find ways to devalue the task at which we failed, and become less motivated to persevere and reach our goals. This phenomenon is known as the "sour-grape effect", which was discovered by Professor Hallgeir Sjastad.

Sjastad explains that "sour-grape effect" is a self-protective mechanism. "Most of us picture ourselves as competent people, so when external feedback suggests otherwise, it poses a serious threat to that self-image," he says. "The easiest way out is to deny or explain away the external signal, so we can reduce the inconsistency and preserve a positive sense of self. We do this even without noticing. "

If you have one bad interview for your dream job, you might convince yourself that you don't really want it at all, and stop applying for similar positions. The same goes if you fail to impress at a sports trial, or if a publisher rejects the first submission of your manuscript. "We tend to explain away our shortcomings and convince ourselves our ‘Plan C' is actually our ‘Plan A'," Sjastad says.

It doesn't mean we should persevere in goals all the time. It can be healthy to change ambitions if the process is no longer making us happy. But the "sour-grape effect may lead us to come to this decision prematurely, rather than hanging on a little and seeing whether we might learn and improve.

Failures are unavoidable. By learning to face the disappointment instead of devaluing its importance and pretending nothing happened, you may find it easier to achieve your goals. 

This fall, students at the University of Massachusetts found a new menu at their dining commons: the "diet for a cooler planet" menu. This meant herb-roasted lamb, raised with a carbon-friendly approach. It included sweet potatoes that had been picked from a local farm's field post-harvest. The options were plant-heavy, locally grown, and involved little to no packaging.

"We wanted to let students participate in climate action by making choices about their food," says Kathy Wicks, sustainability director for UMass Dining. The university is not alone in this effort. Increasingly, American consumers and institutions are thinking about how their food choices factor into climate change. For many, small choices at the grocery store, dining hall, and restaurant can feel more accessible than big-ticket options like buying a fuel-efficient car or installing home solar panels.

Small changes in dietary habits may make a big difference. Climate activists often target fossil fuels and transportation systems, but studies point to the food system as a significant contributor to global warming. According to Project Drawdown, a research organization that evaluates climate solutions, the way food is grown, transported, and consumed accounts for about a quarter of the world's greenhouse gas emissions. Beef is a regular target. "If, on average, Americans cut a quarter pound of beef per week from their diet, it's like taking 10million cars off the road a year," says Sujatha Bergen, director of health campaigns for the Natural Resources Defense Council. Food waste ranks third among climate solutions. While much waste occurs before consumers are involved—food left on the field or "chucked" because it does not fit appearance standards, Americans also throw out a lot of food they have purchased: about $1, 600 worth a year per family of four.

"People are beginning to understand that their food choices make a big impact on climate," says Megan Larmer, director of regional food at the Glynwood Center for Regional Food and Farming in New York. But, she cautions substantial change will need to come from the wholefood system.

As a child, I never considered myself an athlete at all as I was very uncoordinated. However, I did love to run because I felt as if I was flying but this all changed two years ago when I suffered a knee injury. I was bedridden for two weeks and I had a difficult time moving even short distances. I literally cried myself on my way to the car for a few days. 

When therapy wasn't working well for me, I signed up for a hot yoga class for girls, Bikram Yoga to be exact. Starting a yoga practice was truly a godsend because it helped me gain strength in my knees but, most importantly, yoga helped me attain a more peaceful state of mind, body and spirit. 

Since each class was heated to 105°F, every time I stepped foot in the yoga studio, I'd feel a surge of negative thoughts come upon me like a big ocean wave. Some of these thoughts were, in the beginning of my practice, so strong that I walked out of the class several times. However, as the months passed by, I noticed that when I didn't get swayed away by my negative thoughts, I could stay in the hot room for longer.

After 3-4 months of practicing hot yoga, my arms and legs were beginning to get definition. I also woke up with so much more energy than I had before starting my yoga practice and I gradually started shedding the pounds from my body. Yoga literally made me feel as if I'd taken a shot of energy drink and just gave me that burst that helped my knees heal and made my overall health better. 

As I saw some of my classmates do poses that looked appealing to me, I started to think maybe I could do them too. Therefore, yoga helped show me that I have no real limitations physically unless I set those limitations myself through eating junk and thinking in negative limiting terms. 

Also, practicing yoga in front of a mirror helped me connect with myself and practicing with a group of people really helped me to feel a greater sense of connection with humanity whereas before I didn't. Overall, this yoga practice has helped me to see I'm part of a bigger picture in life!

Compared to most people with disabilities, Zhao Hongcheng is lucky. 

Born in 1990, a wheelchair has been part of Zhao's life since she was 1 year old due to the aftereffects of poliomyelitis（小儿麻痹症）. However, it did not stop her from completing her college and graduate studies before becoming a white-collar worker in Shanghai. And now, as a video content creator who has over 84, 000 followers on the video-sharing platform Bilibili, Zhao wants to be a bridge between the disabled and the rest of society. 

First attempt

"I made my first video in 2019," Zhao says, adding that it was also the years he moved to Shanghai. "My original purpose was to find an emotional outlet. I always encountered inconvenience caused by my wheelchair when going out， which made me feel sad. However, I barely had any disabled friends, so I had no one to talk to. I felt quite lonely," Zhao explains. In 2019, the rising popularity of short videos inspired Zhao.

Under the username Da Chengzi Hao Meimei on Bilibili, her first vlog about a trip to Guangzhou with friends was viewed more than 2, 000 times on the first day, which surprised Zhao. "This made me feel that there were many things worth sharing in my life, and it also gave me a sense of mission," she explains. That first video has since been viewed over 48, 000times and her fourth video, displaying how she got to work in a wheelchair, made her even more popular.

Rising ambition

After her fourth video went viral, she continued to make short videos and, in 2021. became a full-time content creator on Bilibili. In her video about an accessibility bus tour in Shanghai, she put forward a piece of advice for such facilities. Fortunately, her proposal was adopted by the city and is currently being optimized. Zhao's other videos, including a list of praise and criticism for various daily travel experiences in Shanghai, have also received wide attention. 

"One of the great things about being a content creator is that I feel like I have the initiative of discourse-that is, （talking about）the real difficulties and pains that a disabled person faces," Zhao says.

Long way to go

Zhao says education and employment are the two major hurdles for the disabled group around her. She explains that she has heard many stories about disabled people dropping out of school and that some students with good grades were rejected by their chosen universities or were persuaded to change majors. Beyond that, some people with minor disabilities, which may not affect their daily life at all, were being dismissed by companies, due to their physical examination reports reflecting their issue. 

Zhao says she has developed a new perspective for her videos. "I hope to be a bridge between the wider society and the disabled. I want people to be able to truly experience the life of the disabled and to develop a greater understanding of the group," she says.

Now Bilibili star uses her platform to promote greater understanding of the lives and needs of disabled people. 

There is an older homeless woman who sometimes is sitting near where I am living, begging for money. Unfortunately, the inner city places are often being strongly1 by younger men and women who try to2 the space. 

Whenever I see her, I make sure to give her something, and at least to talk to her for a few seconds if I have a tight 3 . When young people4 around, I often make sure to drop a few coins into her cup while passing her a note without anybody seeing it in the 5 that they will leave her alone. 

Today I was again6 her, giving her some money and some food. I7 before her and then kept down to ask her how she was. She8 me by saying that she wanted to thank me not just for the9 but for always talking to her. 

She10 how hard it was for her to have so little money that she had to 11 and that she often felt ashamed. She now has12 for several days to talk to me and to thank me for13 her like a human being. People walking by, sometimes dropping some money, but14 making eye contact or talking to her make her feel even more15 . And she said she was looking forward to me16 by, because she knew I would look at her and have a17 with her. I had tears in my eyes when thinking of this. Such a small 18 would mean so much to her. 

I still don't know why she is on the street, and maybe one days he will19 , but I will not ask her right away. But I will be even more on the 20 for her, making sure to talk to her as often as possible!

—____. 

—____It's too good an opportunity to miss.