A friend of mine shared this video with me the other day. As a mother of young girls I thought it was especially poignant. I want my daughters to be brave enough to take the opportunities life offers without being too fearful to try.
I am always worried about my girls having the self-confidence to get the things they want out of life. I want them to feel like that CAN do whatever they choose. I’ve never attributed the word “Brave” as being an important part of the equation when it comes to self confidence and self esteem. But now I see that BRAVE = HAPPY.
It reminds me of something I used to hear Dr. Laura say on a regular basis when a female caller would ask about how to increase self esteem. She would always reply by saying that self esteem is something you are NOT born with, it’s something that is earned. Self esteem comes from DOING things that make you proud of yourself. Even if you fail at them, at least you tried and that’s something to be proud of. Most people don’t even bother to try.
I feel like I spent most of my life up to about the age of 21 being too afraid to take opportunities when they came. I’m not sure what magically changed or if I just stopped caring what people thought then. Either way, I know now that being brave is worth the effort it takes. I also know that failure just isn’t nearly as bad as it sounds. Even if you DO experience failure, at least your’re having experiences. Some people never do anything, and that’s just boring.
So…show your daughters this video. Show them these brave girls and give them permission to try new things. Teach them that it’s okay to feel scared or embarrassed, but to just keep pushing through it until they’ve done something to make themselves proud. Tell them that life will be a lot more fun if they can figure this out at an early age. Chances are if they’re having fun from an early age, they’ll lead happier more productive lives.
