Yes, You Can Do Math.
Today, I’ll be talking about something a little different, which we’re all guilty of. Labelling ourselves. “I can’t cook.” “I’m bad at directions.” “Technology just isn’t my thing.” Math is one of the biggest victims of this labelling game. How many times have you heard someone say, “I’m not a math person”? Maybe you’ve said it yourself. It sounds harmless, almost like a joke, but the truth is that this simple label holds a lot of students back from ever giving math a fair chance.
If you know me or have followed this space for a while, you already know I talk about things I’m passionate about, and one of those is math! While other subjects like biology or chemistry demanded extra effort, math felt different. Math came naturally to me growing up. I loved working with numbers, and teaching secondary school students became a joy. I even joked that if someone found math hard, once I explained it, their brain would “open up” and the subject would finally click.
But here’s what I’ve noticed over time: it’s not always the subject that holds people back, it’s the stories we tell ourselves about it. The myths. And math has plenty of those.
So over the next few weeks, I’ll be talking about some of these myths that have kept people, especially young ones from really embracing math. This same principle applies to anything or subject in life you may be struggling with.
Math Myth #1: “I’m Not a Math Person”
Have you ever said this before? Or maybe heard someone else say it? It sounds small, but it’s one of the main reasons people give up on math too early. They believe math belongs to a particular set of intelligent people.
Here’s what I’ve come to understand: we’re all unique. Some things may come naturally to you, others won’t. For me, math was easy, but biology wasn’t. Still, I learned that the only way to improve in the subjects I struggled with was to pay more attention, study harder, and practice consistently. The same principle applies to math. Even though it came naturally to me, whenever I didn’t practice, I didn’t perform as well.
So the first step to breaking this myth is understanding your uniqueness. And then, don’t stop there. Be willing to learn, to practice, and to keep at it even when it feels tough.
Next time your mind says, “I’m not a math person,” flip it and say, “I’ll grow in math if I practice.”
Affirmation: I can do whatever I set my mind to do. I can understand math because I am brilliant!