A friend's daughter was upset at school today because she was asked to go to the front of the class and solve a maths problem on the board. Not such a big deal you may think, it's something we all have to do. She struggled to answer the question and everyone laughed. She felt embarrassed and humiliated.
This little girl is a hard worker yet she struggles with her classwork, especially maths. She recently left her native English speaking country to move to Europe where English is not the first language. The teacher was aware of these issues yet she chose to select this little girl, speak to her in a language she hasn’t yet grasped and gave her a challenging problem.
I don’t believe in wrapping children in cotton wool or treating them with kid gloves, however I think it is important to be fair to them. Many of adult issues are down to the way they were treated at school and which has left a legacy of fear, lack of confidence and sometimes terror. I too, was a victim of similar humiliation, except it was father who created it. I didn’t like Maths or numbers and in fact, still don’t like them. Whenever I brought my Maths homework home, he always insisted on watching me do it and asking me why I was doing it a certain way. I could rarely give him the right answer which made him very angry. Invariably, I would end up in tears.
To this day, I still do not like numbers, however, I do not let it stop me from working with them. I have to prepare my own accounts for my accountant and although it’s not a particularly pleasant job, I get on and do it. I will not let those problems from the past affect the way I feel today.
Are you still holding to things from the past? Don’t become a victim to those issues otherwise it will become your story. You know the one that you keep telling yourself, “I can’t do Maths because I was humiliated at school by my teacher” or “I can’t get a better job because my ex told me I was no good”
Those stories will control you if you let them. Don’t let them.