The bright eyed gymnast looks up at her coach and asks ‘what if I fall?‘ And as if her coach has just scooped her up into her arms, catching her and forever protecting her, she replies ‘oh, but my darling, what if you fly?‘
What better way to influence our future generations than by giving them the confidence and belief in themselves that through trying, perseverance and by giving it their best shot, whatever ‘it’ is, they will not only grow wings and learn to fly, but that they will always be successful.
But success doesn’t always look like we might expect it to; medals, trophies, wedding rings, houses, expensive cars, intelligent children etc. Success comes in all different guises and to have the opportunity to teach and influence children’s thoughts and help them understand that sometimes success is merely a matter of perspective, is something that we should nevertake lightly in our role as a coach.
There will always be winners and there will always be losers, and teaching children how to do both with their heads held high, with grace and with respect for their competitors is another wonderful lesson that we help teach. But any opportunity and experience that any of us can learn from should be considered a success, merely as a result of our growth, personally or professionally.
I often set quite unrealistic and seemingly unattainable goals for myself which can lead to frustration and feeling like I have failed when it doesn’t quite turn out as I had planned, but when I reflect back over the years, I realise that some of my greatest achievements have come at my weakest moments. I learnt how to save money by getting myself into and out of a financial pickle; I learnt how to really love someone by having my heart broken and by concluding that I too had a part to play in the relationship breakdown. I learnt what it takes to run a business in the very moment that I was ready to walk away from it all; I learnt how to be independent when I realised that no one was going to take the rubbish bins out for me anymore. And I am learning to be a better mum every single day that I am fortunate enough to be one.
Our gymnasts learn from falling down and getting back up time and time again. As coaches we give them the confidence and foundations to be able to eventually master whatever it is they are working towards. But along with a skill set and a strong body, we teach them resilience, persistence and the power of never giving up, so that when they grow up, they have a greater chance of succeeding in this crazy world, whatever they choose to do.
So next time you’re faced with an opportunity but you’re unsure whether you are ready for it, or you find yourself questioning whether you will succeed or not, remember this…
…you’ll never really know if you can fly, unless you go out there and try.
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