I'm better than this

I was reading an email this week and the topic was around how to handle mistakes.  They talked about using mistakes to focus your attention on a specific area, transforming the mistake into an advantage.  The most powerful part of the email said:

 “Instead of saying “I’m so bad at this,” say “I’m better than this.” 

Too often we take see our mistakes as a weakness, feeling as if making a mistake is a negative reflection on us.  At times we may avoid that thing at all costs just so that we do not make a mistake again.  Where does that mindset come from?  I don’t believe it is something we consciously teach our children, if we did then they would never learn to walk.  Learning to walk they make dozens of mistakes, which results in losing their balance and falling down, but they keep trying.  It’s almost as if you can hear their little brains saying – I know I can figure this out.  Ultimately they do, and beam with pride enjoying their accomplishment. 

Slowly that resilience starts to fade away.  Challenges present themselves in different ways like reading, writing, math or sports.  “I can do better at this” starts to be overshadowed by “I’m not good at this”. As a parent it breaks your heart to see your child so defeated.  You try to keep your encouragement positive but you can see by their body language they aren’t buying it. However, if we as parents stay consistent with the message that mistakes are opportunities to do better, it will start to sink in for all of us. 

  

Heart-FULLy Yours, 

Kacey