Tenacity can feel like a big concept to explain. How do you help your child keep going when something feels hard, especially when quitting would be easier?

At its core, tenacity is about confidence, setting goals, and learning that mistakes aren’t the end of the story.

These 31 questions are designed to help you build that mindset in everyday moments. Ask them at the dinner table, in the car, or right in the middle of a challenge. You might be surprised by where the conversation leads.

Questions to Build Confidence

1. What’s something you kept going with even when it felt hard?
2. Can you think of a time you stopped something but maybe could have kept trying?
3. Why is it important to keep trying, even when things don’t work out right away?
4. Who’s a character you love that kept going through something hard?
5. Can you think of a time someone made a mistake and it still turned out okay?

Questions for Goal Setting

1. What are some things you love to do?
2. What’s something you’d like to learn?
3. What’s something you think would be really cool to get good at?
4. How do people get better at something over time?
5. Why does this goal matter to you? How will it feel when you reach it?
6. What might make you want to quit, and what could you do when that feeling shows up?

Questions About Skills and Growth

1. What’s something you’re proud of getting better at? How did you do it?
2. What’s something new you’d like to improve at?
3. What feels hard or a little scary right now?
4. Does something being hard always mean it’s scary? Why or why not?

Questions About Mistakes and Setbacks

1. What did you learn from that?
2. What went better than you expected?
3. What would you try differently next time?
4. What’s a mistake that helped you learn something important?
5. When a character you like messes up, does it change how you see them? Or make you like them more?
6. Do you think mistakes can be helpful? Why?
7. How can mistakes help us grow?
8. Why is it important not to be afraid of mistakes?
9. How can we feel okay after we mess up?
10. What’s one thing you can do after making a mistake?

Questions When Something Feels Too Big

1. What part feels the hardest right now?
2. Does this feel hard because it’s new, or just really challenging?
3. When have you felt this way before and kept going?
4. What’s one small step you could try next?
5. If that plan didn’t work, what could you try instead?
6. What would you say to a friend in this situation?

Whether they’re stuck on a puzzle, trying something new, or celebrating a small win, these moments matter. These questions help kids recognize their own strength, learn from setbacks, and keep going.

Because tenacity isn’t built all at once. It grows in small, everyday moments like these, and you’re helping shape it, one conversation at a time.