This morning the stars collided, having my girl in the car while NPR shared a story about east and west cultural approaches to how we message the path to success to our children.
My version of an abbreviated short cut: in the west we teach that if you are smart you have access to success, that there is something you have. In the east, it's more about the hard work, the effort.
For me, it's about the balance of the two, the intersection. I am teaching my girl that all by herself, she is an amazing human being. And there are many amazing human beings that will contribute to the amazing world we live in. What will ensure her success in whatever she chooses- from getting up morning after morning to having a view of planet earth gazing up from the depths of the deepest sea or down from a perch on the brightest star - is the work she puts in. It's her inherent ability to not only show up, but to apply the effort, sometimes endure the suffering and take a wash, rinse and repeat approach.
She gets it, in her own way. We are learning together that there is no value in fearing failure- only opportunities. She also knows I am here to coach and cheer her choice by choice.
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