I Am Awesome

Repeat after me...

I

AM

AWESOME.

Ok, one more time...

I

AM

AWESOME!

Last time, and with some feeling...

I

AM

AWESOME!!!

How often do you do this?  Just stop what you are doing and say, out loud, that you are awesome.  We just don't do it.  Why?

Because someone might hear?

Because we don't think we really are awesome?

Because someone might prove us wrong?

I have been developing this post for a couple of days and something happened in class today that made me sit down and finally put words to this.  I have a students who is an amazing artist.  I love everything that she sketches in her book.  She was working a drawing of a parrot and the eye on the parrot was so fantastically drawn that I actually touched the paper to make sure that she didn't glue a picture on top of it to make it look better.  The shading, the colors.  I was blown away.  I told her work was amazing and she got embarrassed.  Not embarrassed like "Oh, you are just being kind." but actually was on the verge of a panic attack because I was giving her compliments.  I told her that she is extremely gifted and she should be standing up in class showing her work to everyone.  That made it worse and she covered up her book with her arms so I couldn't look anymore.

There is a ton of research out there on brain theory and the differences between men and women.  I have read that males are more likely to raise their hands and answer questions in class, but females will only answer after they have a thoughtful response and are confident in their answer.  I see this happen every day.  Typically guys will call out the first thing that pops in their head, but the girls are more likely to get the answer correct.

We tell people to have confidence in themselves, but if they were to go around proclaiming their awesomeness, we call them egotistical.

You were made to be awesome.  If you ever doubt yourself, just look in a mirror and say "Who's Awesome? I'm Awesome!"

And don't you ever forget it!!!