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Training wheels help a child learn to ride a bicycle.
They reduce the risk of falling while balance develops. But eventually they have to come off. Part of learning to ride is discovering: I can balance on my own.
People need that evidence too.
Confidence doesn’t come only from being told we are capable. It also comes from experiencing uncertainty, making decisions, navigating difficulty and seeing what happens.
When those experiences are quietly removed, something unexpected can happen.
We may be safer, yet less certain of ourselves.
At work, protection can take many forms. Someone may be kept away from a difficult situation, given limited information or excluded from something because others believe it is better for them.
The intention may be entirely protective.
But when the protection is invisible, the person only experiences its consequences. They may interpret reduced exposure as reduced trust, and reduced trust as information about their own capability.
What protects someone in the short term can unintentionally weaken the confidence they need in the long term.
Perhaps the question isn’t whether we should protect people.
It is
How do we protect someone without taking away their opportunity to discover what they can handle?
