Martial arts schools so many times have students brought to them to build their confidence. What is it about the training that takes place there that accomplishes that goal, and what can you do as a parent at home that would emulate that training.
Confidence is built on feeling good about yourself and what you have achieved. In the martial arts you have goals set before you, some of them physical and some of them mental. You are given the time frame to accomplish them in, and if you stay on target and practice you will most likely reach those goals. When goals are reached, the confidence is built, so that when the next even harder task is asked of us, we know that if we commit ourselves to the task or skill, we will be able to accomplish it and yes – build even more confidence.
Imagine though, we quit or gave up saying it was too hard, or worse asked the instructor to excuse us from having to do something because… what would our confidence be like when the next task was asked of us. We may be willing to give up again, and possibly with even less effort.
Here is the bottom line: When we achieve something after working hard, we feel good about ourselves and know we can do anything if we commit. When we feel confident, we’ll set more goals, and have an easier time committing and persevering. What have you done recently that shows perseverance? Did you get past your fears, or not let others influence you to stop reaching for your goals? Did you tell yourself, “When the going gets tough, I don’t quit!”