Your child is not going to excel at everything – and that’s okay.

Kids can think they need to be good at something before they’re willing to try. If they can’t be sure they’ll succeed, they may decide it’s better not to try at all.

I was reminded of this when my son had the opportunity to do track. He didn’t really want to do it. When I asked why, he told me he didn’t think he would be good at it  He was worried that if he didn’t do well, people would think less of him or make fun of him

He hadn’t even started, and he was already worried about the outcome.

This is where emotional resilience comes in. He could feel like he wasn’t going to be good at it. He could feel worried and nervous about what people might think. He could feel uncomfortable not knowing how it would turn out. None of those feelings meant he couldn’t still choose to try.

Kids afraid to try may be worried about failing, being judged or not being good enough. What matters is helping your kids understand that difficult emotions don’t have to decide what they do next.

This is what I know: Your kids don’t have to be the best. They may feel nervous that they won’t succeed. However, they can still focus on learning, trying and giving their best effort instead of worrying about getting it perfect.

Until next time…