Joseph Schooling’s mama speaks to us about the value of playing with your kids and how hard work is more important than innate talent
Beate Baldry spoke to May Schooling (or Sassy Mama Schooling as she is now affectionally called) at Mahota Commune to get her tips on nurturing talented kids. She knows a thing or two about this given her only child, Joseph Schooling won the first ever Olympic gold for Singapore in the 2016 Rio Olympics when he beat Michael Phelps in the 100m Butterfly.
Interesting thing is, Mama Schooling actually believes natural talent only accounts for 10% of success – the other 90%, she says, is down to hard work and training! So how do you encourage your child to work hard and nurture an interest or talent? May Schooling says it’s important to guide your kids, encourage them in their chosen interest but also maintain their studies (though she didn’t expect all A’s from Joseph she said she would be happy for him to just pass!).
Let them find what they love and choose their own passion (you can’t force your dreams onto your child).
Let kids have fun!
Let them experience lots of different activities and sports.
Let kids play…and here’s a biggie – play with your kids.
Let them play outside and burn off energy – this helps manage their academic stress too.
All wise words from Mama Schooling but it’s important to note that Mama and Dad Schooling invested a lot of their own time (and money) in supporting Joseph. He showed an interest in all sports (thanks to his sporty parents) at an early age, but when he had to narrow down his choices to one sport at school he chose swimming as that was what he loved. Passion identified, that’s when the hard work kicked in. Mama Schooling says Joseph was so determined: he knew he wanted to be in the Olympics from an early age.
Read More: The Best Swim Schools in Singapore for Babies and Kids
Both parents took shifts being with him in the USA when he was 14 and May says she couldn’t have done it if she’d had more than one child to look after and support. This hard work and sheer determination paid off, though, and Singapore has both Joseph and his supportive encouraging parents to thank for bringing home the gold!
Meet Joseph Schooling!
Pssst! Want to meet Mama Schooling’s champ in person? Joseph Schooling will be in town from 26 – 27 May and 1 – 2 June at the Mahota booths for the DBS Marina Regatta 2018, Southeast Asia’s largest land and water obstacle course (check out #BattleBayExtreme for more!). If you missed the fabulous “Eat Like A Champion: DBS Marina Regatta 2018” workshop at Mahota Commune where May Schooling was cooking Joseph’s fave snacks, this is your chance to see May and Joseph cooking together. Mahota Commune is bringing their green living and holistic wellness workshops to the DBS Marina Regatta 2018 at the Creators Market. Workshops will range from cooking superfood snacks to kid-friendly upcycling and craft. Plus there will be free yoga and fitness classes and ArtBox, Thailand’s largest creative pop-up market with over 400 lifestyle, fashion and food stalls.
Thanks, Mama Schooling – you are one sassy mama!