Your Child’s Beliefs and the Future of Work
Until I started building my own business and carving out my own path, I’d never really asked myself:
What do I believe about myself?
I’d never thought deeply about the beliefs I held—let alone realised they were driving my entire existence.
Beliefs come out of our mouths every day.
“I’m not good at this.”
“You’re always so slow.”
“I’ll never get this done.”
“This will only take me a few minutes.”
These are all beliefs. Some are seemingly harmless. Others run deeper.
Beliefs like:
I can be happy.
I’m capable.
It’s OK to be me.
I’m loved no matter what.
As Gandhi famously said:
“Your beliefs become your thoughts,
Your thoughts become your words,
Your words become your actions,
Your actions become your habits,
Your habits become your values,
Your values become your destiny.”
These deeper beliefs—the ones I didn’t even realise were in the driver’s seat—were the ones holding me back.
They were also the ones formed in childhood.
Not because my parents didn’t believe in me....
But because they didn’t have the skills to embed these beliefs in me.
What We Believe Shapes What We Become
Research shows we become what is believed about us.
In one study, a casual basketball player—who had little coordination and couldn’t make a single shot—was blindfolded. She took ten shots and missed them all.
Then, still blindfolded, she was told to shoot again. This time, the crowd cheered after each throw, making her believe she was scoring.
When the blindfold was removed, she took another ten shots—and this time, she scored four out of ten.
Nothing about her physical skill had changed.
What changed was her belief in herself.
Why This Matters for the Future of Work
The world our children are growing up in is changing fast. The future of work isn’t about following the rules or fitting into rigid roles.
It’s about:
Creativity
Adaptability
Self-direction
Carving out your own path
We can’t predict what jobs will exist in 20 years. But we do know that the ability to back yourself, think flexibly, and keep going even when others don’t see your vision—that will always be essential.
And these are the qualities shaped by beliefs formed in childhood.
What Kind of Beliefs Are You Instilling?
Inside the Raising Happy Humans program, we dive deep into how beliefs are formed—and how even small, well-meaning phrases like “Good boy” or “Good girl” can unconsciously create limiting beliefs.
We talk about:
What to say instead
How to intentionally embed empowering beliefs
How to lead your child to believe in themselves (without losing your mind or overthinking every word)
When you understand how to lead yourself, you can start to lead your child toward the kind of self-belief that will support them—whatever future they choose.
Artist: Jenna Roase Simon
Want to raise a child who believes in themselves no matter what?
Join the Stressed to Best Parent method and learn how to instill the beliefs that help your child thrive in an uncertain world. We talk about how beliefs are formed and how saying something as simple as “good boy” or “good girl” can be instilling beliefs in your child that can hold them back in their future. And we learn what to say instead.
The future of work demands that more and more, children will be required to carve out their own path. Whilst we don’t know what specific skills will be required in the future of work, we know these subtle core beliefs make a big difference to how easily they will navigate their path.
