A few weeks ago, a mom friend told me her 15-year-old was spiraling over a math test. He was sure if he got a bad grade, it would wreck his chances of getting into a good college. Instead of lecturing him about studying harder, she had a brilliant response: “It’s like every hour you put in is like money in a savings account. It might not look like much today, but it pays off later.” He rolled his eyes, as teenagers do, but he got it. Before long, he started seeing his effort as an investment in himself. It’s the mindset we want all our children to have: that every effort counts.

Every hour of studying, every soccer practice, every late-night rehearsal, every time they push though something hard, are all a deposit in their future confidence and resilience. The same goes for small, more qui

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