Problem is that in the adult world we come across these words being used for real. We might fail to get a particular job, or to meet a deadline. Relationships fail. I cannot believe that sheltering children from the harsh realities of life can help them. We all have to learn what it is to lose at some time or another.

Maybe if 'fail' was not used in such a critical sense, to beat the recipient about the head, but to try and help that person understand why they did not succeed and to accept that they were trying something that was not right for them, or to assist them in trying to find another way to reach an objective, would be more healthy.