Pass the credit, keep the lesson.

I’m your coach for a minute, and I want to share a simple idea that can change how you handle wins and losses: pass the credit, keep the lesson. When things go well, hand out the praise — tell teammates, friends, or family that they helped. When things go wrong, don’t hold on to the pain; hold on to what it taught you. Saying short, kind phrases can calm your chest, steady your mind, and help you grow. These phrases aren’t magic, but they are tiny tools you can carry and use anytime you’re nervous, sad, or proud.

Here are short phrases you can say out loud or in your head. Use them after a game, a test, an argument, or a stumble: - “We did this together.”
- “Thanks for your help.”
- “I did my best today.”
- “What can I learn from this?”
- “I will try again tomorrow.”
- “It’s okay to ask for help.”
- “I’m proud of my small step.”
- “Mistakes help me grow.”

Each phrase has a job. “We did this together” and “Thanks for your help” build teamwork and stop you from feeling like you have to carry a win alone. People like to be noticed, and when you pass the credit, you make stronger friendships and better teams. Saying “I did my best today” and “I’m proud of my small step” helps you notice effort instead of only the score. That makes you kinder to yourself, and kinder words to yourself make it easier to keep trying. When things don’t go how you wanted, the questions “What can I learn from this?” and “I will try again tomorrow” move you out of blame and into practice. They turn a stuck feeling into a plan. “It’s okay to ask for help” and “Mistakes help me grow” give you permission to be human — to try things that are hard without pretending you must be perfect.

Try this short coach routine: after any big moment, say one phrase to someone else and one phrase to yourself. If you won a match, tell a teammate, “We did this together,” and then tell yourself, “I did my best today.” If you lost, tell a teammate, “Thanks for your help,” and ask yourself, “What can I learn from this?” Doing this a few times will make it feel natural. You’ll start noticing that passing the credit makes people want to play with you more, and keeping the lesson makes you better next time. Remember, I’m not a doctor — I’m a coach who believes practice matters. Use these phrases like warm-up drills for your heart: simple, short, and powerful.