Praise Her Bravery, Not Her Perfection
DashStrom Stands with the International Day of the Girl
What International Day of the Girl and DashStrom both believe about girls, courage, and the freedom to try
Every October 11, the world pauses for International Day of the Girl. The United Nations established the day in 2011 to recognize girls’ rights and the particular challenges girls face around the world. The UN describes it as a day that belongs to everyone who cares about girls: a moment to celebrate them and to amplify their voices, actions, and leadership.
This year’s theme was shaped through consultations with girls and girl-led networks, and it is a call to end child marriage and invest in girls’ rights. At its heart is a simple conviction: every girl deserves a childhood, and the freedom to learn, to grow, to make her own choices, and to define her own future.
The barriers girls face around the world are far more serious than anything we see on a gym floor in Pittsburgh. But the belief underneath this year’s theme is one we share completely: a girl’s future should be hers to shape. And one of the quietest ways that freedom slips away from girls, everywhere, is the belief that they have to be perfect before they’re allowed to try.
Brave, Not Perfect
“Most girls are taught to avoid risk and failure… being brave means being willing to fail.” — Reshma Saujani, “Teach Girls Bravery, Not Perfection”
Saujani’s call to teach bravery instead of perfection cuts to the heart of a growing problem facing children today. From an early age, kids absorb the message that getting it right matters more than trying. Mistakes feel costly. Failure feels personal.
For girls, the research shows that pressure arrives early and hits hard. In a nationwide poll commissioned by the authors of The Confidence Code for Girls, girls’ confidence dropped 30% between the ages of 8 and 14, and between ages 12 and 13, the share of girls who said they weren’t allowed to fail jumped by 150%.
The same pattern shows up in physical activity. The Women’s Sports Foundation’s 2026 Sport Report found that at ages 8 to 10, girls and boys are equally likely (80%) to say sports are “for someone like me.” By high school, that number falls to 66% for girls. Roughly one in three girls no longer feels that sport belongs to her.
DashStrom challenges that narrative, years before that drop begins.
Where Day of the Girl Meets DashStrom
The values behind International Day of the Girl line up closely with what our coaches train every day.
Girls’ voices matter.
The Working Group on Girls, the NGO committee that coordinates the annual Day of the Girl Summit alongside the UN, is built on the principle that girls should be equal participants in every decision that affects them. Its flagship Girls Speak Out event puts girl advocates in front of policymakers to share their own stories. At DashStrom, voice starts small: a child naming a “rainy thought” out loud, then deciding what to do with it. Our coaches ask reflective questions instead of handing down corrections, so kids learn that their own thinking is worth listening to.
Girls are leaders.
This year’s UN message is direct: girls are leaders and change-makers. We see leadership take shape in our classes all the time, and it rarely looks like being first across the line. It looks like the child who struggled with a challenge turning around to coach the next kid in line. It looks like a team that slows down so everyone finishes together.
Every girl deserves to define her own future.
Defining your own future requires believing you can grow into it. That’s what growth mindset gives a child: the inner version of the freedom Day of the Girl fights for. It sounds like this: I don’t have to be perfect to be capable.
Bravery Is the Goal
At DashStrom, we intentionally create environments where bravery is the goal. Our coaches invite kids to step into challenges that feel just a little uncomfortable. Not reckless. Not overwhelming. But enough to spark doubt, and then determination. Kids are told upfront: this might be hard. That’s the point.
In these moments, something powerful happens. Kids learn that effort is safe. That failure is a data point; it is temporary; it provides learning. That courage doesn’t mean fearlessness; it means showing up anyway. We see it when a child hesitates, then tries. When she falls, gets back up, and tries again. When she surprises herself.
Over time, that belief shapes how kids approach school, friendships, and unfamiliar situations. It gives them permission to take healthy risks and to trust themselves through uncertainty.
Why Coaches Matter So Much
The adults around a girl can either widen her sense of what’s possible or quietly shrink it. The Women’s Sports Foundation found that among girls ages 8 to 10 who quit sports, 15% named their coach as a reason, three times the rate of boys the same age. The good news is in the same research: the coach relationship is one of the most controllable factors in whether girls stay in the game. And the payoff lasts. In the Foundation’s Play to Lead research, more than half of women who played youth sports said it taught them to learn from mistakes, and 71% went on to hold formal leadership roles.
That’s why DashStrom coaches are trained to notice and reinforce brave moments. Language matters. Instead of “good job,” we say, “I saw you keep going.” Instead of correcting mistakes immediately, we ask reflective questions. The focus stays on bravery, not outcomes.
For Girls, and for Every Child
While Saujani’s work began with girls, the truth is universal: children of all genders are growing up in a world that rewards polish over persistence. Social media amplifies comparison. Digital environments encourage consumption over creation. The result is kids who hesitate before trying, afraid of getting it wrong.
Day of the Girl asks us to pay special attention to girls, and we will. But a class where bravery is the goal is good for every child in it. It teaches girls that they belong in the challenge, and it teaches boys to cheer when a girl takes one on.
Celebrate Day of the Girl This October 11
Ask the girl in your life about something brave she tried this week, and skip the question of whether it worked.
Swap one “perfect!” or “you’re so smart” for “I saw you keep going.”
Share a story of a time you failed, and what you did next.
Explore the Girls Speak Out and the 11 Days of Action from the Working Group on Girls, and read the UN’s resources on this year’s theme (links below).
In a culture obsessed with achievement, DashStrom offers something much more valuable: space to grow without pressure to perform. When girls learn that failure isn’t something to fear, they become more confident, more resilient, and more willing to lead. That’s a future worth celebrating, on October 11 and every day.
Resources
United Nations: International Day of the Girl Child. History of the day, the 2026 theme, and ways to stand with girls. un.org/en/observances/girl-child-day
The Working Group on Girls. The NGO committee working for and with girls at the United Nations. girlsrights.org/wp
The Day of the Girl Summit. Girls Speak Out, the 11 Days of Action campaign, and a playbook for local summits. workinggroupongirls.org/day-of-the-girl-summit
Women’s Sports Foundation: Factors Influencing Girls’ Participation in Sports. Updated with 2026 Sport Report data on belonging, coaching, and cost. womenssportsfoundation.org
The Confidence Code for Girls: The Confidence Collapse poll. Survey of nearly 1,400 8- to 18-year-olds on the girls’ confidence gap. confidencecodegirls.com/poll
Reshma Saujani: Teach Girls Bravery, Not Perfection. medium.com/@reshmasaujani
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