Despite these good intentions, barely an hour goes by where I don’t find myself saying “Shouldn’t you be studying?” – as they score endless points on the Xbox or “It’s only another month and a half and then it’s over!” to their backs as they walk down the steps and head to the beach. At my lowest point, I have been known to stand upstairs in my T-shirt at 3am – whispering loudly – as they sit eating popcorn with friends – “You won’t be able to concentrate if you don’t get enough sleep!”

As I left the house for my Friday run, I realized that they are not the only people I spend my time persuading. I do it to myself. Every time I get up and go for a run I have an internal conversation – how it’s keeping me fit/healthy/slim?

Every time I do a weights session I remind myself of osteoporosis and how important it is to build and maintain muscle. Every time I swim, I convince myself of the positive effects it has on my body, how it enables recovery.

My internal voice is what makes sure I am fit and healthy just as my voice to my boys reminds them how they need to study.

My internal voice reminds me that I shouldn’t have the extra stick of Twix that they put in the packet just as my external voice reminds my boys they need to eat well.

I know that the effort they put into studying today will be shown in the results they get at the end of August. I know that listening to my internal voice which encourages me to push through and reminds me that what I put into my body today, will be felt when I can walk up a flight of stairs with no problem and can pick up a suitcase without needing help.

As children/young adults they struggle to perceive the future result of their efforts and we help them to develop their internal voices which will help them achieve their best. This is because as adults, we know better. We persist in our support, in our reminders, because we know that encouragement is what’s needed to achieve goals – for them, and for ourselves.