Watch: How to unlock a child’s potential

"The words we use directly impact their (kids) potential. When we tell them they can be anything, they bloom; when we don't, they wilt. And when we stereotype them based on their genders, that gets ingrained into their psyche," said Samantha Ettus in a Ted Talk.

Every parents wants their child to be successful and the way to do so is by getting them to realise their potential. In a thought-provoking Ted Talk, author and mom Samantha Ettus talked about how parents can achieve that.

“For years now, my work has focussed on helping people reach their potential and getting from where they are today to where they could be,” said Ettus.

Every single adult is a champion of potential. The sad thing is that we are all in the middle of dramatically failing at it, Ettus pointed out. Explaining the reason behind this, she said, “The mistake comes in the form of two colours: pink and blue. The universal mistake we are making is the gender stereotyping of boys and girls.”

Gender stereotyping is practised everywhere, from homes, toy stores to classrooms. And it is not about lack of awareness but progress, the speaker pointed out. And perhaps that is what is also encouraging a lot of companies to cash in on such stereotypes as part of their marketing strategies.

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Ettus went on to explain how the media children consume are mostly sexist. As a mother of two girls and one boy, she added that while she monitors what they see, she also encourages them to question it.

Ettus urged parents to identify and point out stereotypes. The author asserted, “The words we use directly impact their (kids) potential. When we tell them they can be anything, they bloom; when we don’t, they wilt. And when we stereotype them based on their genders, that gets ingrained into their psyche.”

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