How The Parenting Gift Of A Growth Mindset Lead Me To Perform In Carnegie Hall At 15
When I was 15 I travelled to Carnegie Hall in New York City, walked onto the world famous stage, and performed to a sold-out audience. I sometimes still don’t believe it.
The small town childrens choir I was part of was unexpectedly good. So good that we got invited to New York to represent Canada as part of an International Children’s Choir. We sang our hearts out to cheers and standing ovations. It was beyond anything I ever thought would happen to me and was a defining experience in my life. But it almost didn’t happen.
To get into the choir I had to audition. I spent that morning warming up to Savage Garden and Celine Dion CDs as my stomach did flips in anticipation. The perfectionist voice in my head played on repeat that I wasn’t good enough, and the fear of failure took a strong hold. I told my mom I wasn’t going to the audition. She sat beside me, gave me a pep talk and said I’d regret it if I didn’t try.
I was terrified, but I went. They offered me a spot!
Two years after Carnegie Hall we did a musical tour in Cuba. What opportunities I would have missed!
My mom didn’t realize it at the time, but she was teaching me a key component to a growth mindset. I believe it’s one of the most valuable gifts you can give your children.
A growth mindset is the belief that we are capable of learning and developing talents, and that failure is not something to be afraid of, but a powerful learning tool in the growth journey. It allows us to dream big and believe we can make it happen.
We teach it to our children in the way we respond to our own challenges, and how we react when they are challenged or make mistakes. With a growth mindset we work hard over long periods, we take risks, and we welcome failure.
My parents encouraged us to try, and because of that in our teens we did some cool things. One sibling spent a week sailing tall ships in the English Channel. Another was presented with the Duke of Edinburgh Award by a member of the royal family. And one went to Japan on an exchange.
A growth mindset says “I can’t… yet!”. It praises effort over outcome and doesn’t assign labels. Learn about it, adopt the principles, and watch your kids soar. Because they will!
The small town childrens choir I was part of was unexpectedly good. So good that we got invited to New York to represent Canada as part of an International Children’s Choir. We sang our hearts out to cheers and standing ovations. It was beyond anything I ever thought would happen to me and was a defining experience in my life. But it almost didn’t happen.
To get into the choir I had to audition. I spent that morning warming up to Savage Garden and Celine Dion CDs as my stomach did flips in anticipation. The perfectionist voice in my head played on repeat that I wasn’t good enough, and the fear of failure took a strong hold. I told my mom I wasn’t going to the audition. She sat beside me, gave me a pep talk and said I’d regret it if I didn’t try.
I was terrified, but I went. They offered me a spot!
Two years after Carnegie Hall we did a musical tour in Cuba. What opportunities I would have missed!
My mom didn’t realize it at the time, but she was teaching me a key component to a growth mindset. I believe it’s one of the most valuable gifts you can give your children.
A growth mindset is the belief that we are capable of learning and developing talents, and that failure is not something to be afraid of, but a powerful learning tool in the growth journey. It allows us to dream big and believe we can make it happen.
We teach it to our children in the way we respond to our own challenges, and how we react when they are challenged or make mistakes. With a growth mindset we work hard over long periods, we take risks, and we welcome failure.
My parents encouraged us to try, and because of that in our teens we did some cool things. One sibling spent a week sailing tall ships in the English Channel. Another was presented with the Duke of Edinburgh Award by a member of the royal family. And one went to Japan on an exchange.
A growth mindset says “I can’t… yet!”. It praises effort over outcome and doesn’t assign labels. Learn about it, adopt the principles, and watch your kids soar. Because they will!