As I was working on my latest book, I reflected on this sweet memory from several years ago, when I was putting the final touches to FASCINATE: How to Make Your Brand Impossible to Resist. I just had to share it with you…

This weekend I was writing the introduction for my book. I sat drinking coffee, typing on the sofa, and watching my son playing.

My son Asher is 10 years old, and he expresses himself with the fearlessness of a young boy who has not yet acquired the self-doubt of public failure. He hasn’t learned how to be boring, yet.

I know he’ll probably learn soon. Or more accurately, the world will teach him.

One day he will forget the steps, or miss the ball, or flunk the test. Someone will tell him he’s not good enough or smart enough or cool enough. Too this or not enough that.

And no matter how untrue it is, no matter how much evidence there is to the contrary, he’ll take his spark and hide it away in a box, high on a shelf.

Here’s what I want to tell my children, and your children, and you:

You don’t need to find the light. You are the light. 

When you let your personality shine, you can light up the world. 

How do you encourage your kids to shine?