Have you ever given up on something because other people didn’t believe you were up to it? You wouldn’t be the first person, but I bet just thinking about it makes you mad.

Recently I saw that one of my little boys was worried about trying out for a team at school.

“What if I fail?” He asked.

Before I knew it words that my father once said to me we’re coming out of my mouth:

“How do you think success happens?”

My son sighed and shrugged.

“Because of failure! You can’t have the one without the other. So if you want to succeed, you have to be prepared to fail.”

He looked at me doubtfully, then smiled a thought: “Like Chinwag?”

Chinwag’s Tale, tells the story of a very determined little dog, who wouldn’t give up on his dreams. He gets laughed at all the time by doubters who take one look at him and say: “You can’t do that – you’re just a dog!”

To begin with his tail drops and he slinks away, feeling very small and defeated. But eventually, his strength of character (and self-belief) wins through. He reaches for the moon (quite literally) and, with the help of a few furry friends, he gets there.

It’s easy to give up when others laugh at you. It’s much harder to keep going, but if you believe in yourself, you’ll find the courage to try. If you fail, don’t worry, learn from the experience and maybe try again differently. You may also find that those who once laughed now treat you with newfound respect.

On the other hand, you might succeed. Some clever-clogs once said: “The best revenge is massive success.” It’s probably true. But the important thing for our children never to forget, is that the best way to succeed is to learn how to fail.

Squarehead’s Lessons For Life plan – a series of structured lessons based on the books – will soon be available for schools.  You can buy Chinwag’s Tale on our site for £5.99 – today if you want!