Building Confidence in Kids Archives - UPower Presentations

6 May 2026

Nervous but Choosing Courage

Helping kids face fear can show up in simple, everyday moments. Their heart starts to race. Their thoughts get louder. And then the butterflies show up.

They can feel them before school, before speaking up, before trying something new. And we feel them too – before appointments, conversations – anything that stretches us.

I remember standing at the side of a stage, about to speak. From the outside, everything looked fine, but inside, it was a different story. The butterflies were there, fluttering in my stomach.

I kept hoping they would settle before I walked out.

They didn’t.

I walked out anyway.

I chose not to let them have the final say.

That’s the shift.

The butterflies aren’t the problem. They show up whether we like them or not.

You don’t need to get rid of the feeling. You need to move with it.

This is what I know: Courage doesn’t come first. Courage comes after you feel the butterflies and choose to do ‘the thing’ anyway.

Until next time…

How Powerful is Self-Talk in Shaping a Child’s Resilience?

Recently, I had a conversation with my 11-year-old son about his self-talk during challenging moments—whether on the ice or in everyday life.

I asked him, “What do you tell yourself when things don’t go as planned? How do you bounce back?”

His response was simple yet powerful: “I tell myself, ‘I got this.’ And I keep repeating it.”

When his self talk is, “I got this,” it not only impacts his confidence and determination but also influences the path he will choose to take.

Whenever your child is facing a challenging time, the words they repeat matters. It’s the difference between perseverance and belief in themselves or self-doubt and defeat.

I encourage you to ask your child what they could tell themselves that would give them the power and confidence to bounce back from mistakes, misplays and challenging circumstances.

Here’s What I Know: In teaching them the power of self-talk, you will equip them with a valuable tool for navigating life’s inevitable challenges with courage and resilience.

Until next time…