Stretch mistakes into muscles.

From your coach:

Stretch mistakes into muscles — that is the idea I want you to carry in your pocket like a small tool. Imagine your mistakes are like extra stretches you do before you lift something heavy: they feel weird at first, maybe a little uncomfortable, but each time you stretch you build muscle. When you make a mistake, you’re not broken; you’re practicing being stronger, smarter, and braver. Say simple phrases that change your thinking: “I can learn from this,” “Mistakes help me grow,” “One step at a time,” “I tried and that matters,” and “This feeling will pass.” These short lines are like warm-ups for your mind. Use them when you spill milk, miss a goal, forget a line, or get a low score on a test. When a mistake happens, take three slow breaths and tell yourself one of the phrases out loud. Naming how you feel — “I’m frustrated,” “I’m disappointed,” “I’m nervous” — makes the feeling smaller and easier to move through. Pair a phrase with an action: “I can try again” and then try a different approach, “I don’t know yet” and then ask a question or look something up, “I made a mistake” and then fix what you can or say sorry if you need to. Keep your phrases short so you can use them quickly, like a coach’s whistle that helps you refocus. Remind yourself that everyone you admire has made mistakes — athletes miss shots, artists erase drawings, scientists test wrong ideas — and those mistakes are part of their practice. Try this small routine after a tough moment: notice what happened, name your feeling, pick one short phrase, breathe, and take one tiny step to move forward. Tiny steps build big changes. You can also make your own quick phrases that feel true to you, like “I’m learning,” “Not perfect yet,” or “I’ll keep going.” Put a favorite phrase on a sticky note by your desk, write it on your hand before a hard day, or tell a friend to remind you. As a coach I’ll remind you: practice using these phrases even when things are okay — that way they’ll come faster when things are hard. Mistakes don’t mean you stop; they mean you’re stretching. With every try you turn a mistake into experience, and experience into skill. Keep your voice kind, your steps small, and your curiosity loud. Soon those uncomfortable stretches will feel like warm-up, and the muscles you build will be patience, courage, and confidence.