Support and Inspiration

The other day a colleague told me she considered our book  What Kids Need to Succeed  “inspirational.”

Apparently I was silent for too long.  She went on to explain that, although she thought the book contains good and useful information, she believes that its greatest value is to provide support and inspiration to parents… especially when they doubt or question themselves.

I was only quiet because I was moved.  Frankly, it’s hard to imagine something better than throwing a virtual life preserver to a drowning parent and helping them to shore.  (Except maybe for those parents not to feel like they’re drowning in the first place…)

Being a parent can bring us face-to-face with some of the most powerful versions of anything we feel:  love, pride, joy, fear, self doubt.   Many people are fortunate to have had great parents to show them the way.  Others have to work much harder to extract the value from some of the early lessons. Buttons get pushed.  People hurt.

But feelings aren’t facts.  They can be a valuable source of information.  And sometimes we need help to translate our feelings in a way that is useful to us.

What if “I don’t feel like I can do this” means:

• I need support
• I’m taking on a big challenge
• I’ve never done anything that matters more
• I need to improve my skills
• I’m going to get more training
• I’m looking for a mentor
• I want to make sure I’m looking at (and compensating for) my “blind spots”

What if “I don’t think I can do this” means you’ve got the open-mindedness and willingness to be great?