Tasha: Welcome to the Little Shot Podcast, where big dreams begin with little shots like you. I’m your host, Tasha Eizinger, author of the Little Shot Picture Book series, and I will be interviewing the main characters in the Little Shot books. They are all excited to share their stories with you, my friends. I have loved doing these interviews because you will get to hear some of the backstories that couldn’t be shared in the books. This is the place where we talk about big dreams, character values, and what it takes to shine bright in this world. Whether you’re a kid or a grownup, this podcast is for you. So bring us along on your car ride, snuggle up with your favorite blanket, or get comfy in your classroom as we dive in to today’s episode.

Tasha: Today’s episode is based on the first book in the Little Shot series called The Little Shot Courage. Courage is leading from your heart despite your fear. To learn more about living courageously, we have an incredible guest. She knows what it means to believe in a friend, cheer them on, and lift others up. Please welcome Little Shot’s friend.

Little Shot’s friend: Hi, friends. I’m so happy to be here. I love helping my friends chase their dreams, and I can’t wait to share some tips with all of you on how to encourage each other and go after our dreams together.

Tasha: I think Little Shot’s friend would love to be friends with everyone listening right now. Oh my, I sure would. Wonderful. For our friends who haven’t read The Little Shot Courage, they can listen to me read it on YouTube or at thelittleshot.com. In the meantime, let’s catch them up. Little Shot had a dream of becoming a big shot, also known as a shooting star. Can you share about the moment you saw Little Shot get discouraged?

Little Shot’s friend: She had just gotten teased by a couple of her classmates. They basically told her she’d never become a big shot. I saw her spark dim a little. She started questioning herself and thinking she couldn’t become a big shot.

Tasha: That must have been so hard to see. Hey friends, that’s you, the one listening to this podcast. Have you ever had someone be unkind to you? Maybe they said something that made you feel sad. discouraged, or mad. Think about that experience. How do you feel? Take a deep breath with me. Three, two, one. Sometimes people say unkind things. Remember those unkind things aren’t necessarily true, even though it may still hurt to hear it. I hope you have a friend like Little Shot’s friend to encourage you. Even if you don’t, know that we believe in you. Friend, what do you want to share with our friends listening?

Little Shot’s friend: I want them to remember to encourage each other, not tear each other down.

Tasha: That’s important for all of us to remember.

Little Shot’s friend: It is. Little Shot wanted to shine as a big shot. And as her friend, I wanted to see her make it happen. There was no way I wanted her to give up.

Tasha: Little Shot is lucky to have a friend like you.

Little Shot’s friend: Thank you. Little Shot is supported of me. So I’m lucky to have her too.

Tasha: That’s great. Let’s go back to the moment Little Shot shared about your classmates being unkind. What did you say?

Little Shot’s friend: I reminded her of who she is. I said, you’re hardworking. If you learn the steps, you can make it happen. This is true about her. I didn’t want her to think I believed she could do anything, but I do know her hardworking ability to learn the steps made this big dream possible.

Tasha: That’s good stuff. Your kind words were like sparkles for her heart. It would be fun to help our friends listening send sparkles to their own hearts.

Little Shot’s friend: I would love that.

Tasha: Everyone listening needs to think of something hard they have done. Everyone has done something hard, including our friends listening. Yes, friends.

Little Shot’s friend: Tell me something hard you did. Say it out loud. Now that they know they have done something hard once, that means they can do hard things again and again. Let’s help them remember that. Little Shot’s friend and all of our friends listening, with a big smile on your face, you can even jump around if you want. Repeat after me. I can do hard things.

Little Shot’s friend: I can do hard things.

Tasha: I can do hard things.

Little Shot’s friend: I can do hard things.

Tasha: Excellent. It’s not always fun doing hard things, but we are capable. What is a key part of being able to do something hard?

Little Shot’s friend: Little Shot’s grandma taught us we must have courage.

Tasha: Courage. That’s a big word. What do you mean by that?

Little Shot’s friend: Courage? is leading from your heart despite your fear. That means if there is something in your heart you know is the right thing to do or it’s something that’s important to you, as long as it’s safe, you should do it even if you’re afraid.

Tasha: That is great advice and is probably easier said than done. Hey friends, what is something you want to learn how to do? Is it dribbling a basketball better? Is it running faster? Is it creating sculptures? Is it animating videos? You may be nervous or even afraid, but if it’s safe, have courage. Remember, you can do hard things and learn the steps. Eventually, you can make it happen. Friend, even though it’s not mentioned in the book, you and Little Shot had an important conversation. Can you share that with us now?

Little Shot’s friend: I’m happy to. I didn’t want Little Shot to think becoming a big shot would affect our friendship or that making mistakes is bad. I told her, Little Shot, it’s okay if some nights are hard and you feel like you’re not making progress. Keep learning. Keep practicing. I’ll be here to cheer you on.

Tasha: You are an awesome friend. I hope all of our friends listening are as encouraging and compassionate as you. Basically, you were telling Little Shot it’s okay to make mistakes.

Little Shot’s friend: Mistakes are part of learning and getting better. They aren’t always fun, but they happen to everyone. It’s important to laugh when you can. Little Shot and I shared a lot of laughs.

Tasha: Can you share a time you laughed really hard?

Little Shot’s friend: This isn’t a mistake, but it is funny. One time, Little Shot and I had a snack and a carbonated drink. You know, the kind with bubbles in it. We learned it wasn’t the best idea on the night she was practicing her jumping. Little Shot has already done a few jumps. For whatever reason. This one time, she crouched down low. Her face was determined to jump higher than she ever had. But the bubbles in her tummy came up and made her burp. The burp popped right out of her. We giggled so hard because we didn’t expect it to happen.

Tasha: That’s silly. It is important to laugh even when we are working hard. Hey friends, hard work doesn’t always have to be so hard. Little Shot likes to listen to music and sing along while she cleans. This helps her get something done that she doesn’t want to do. What are some things that help you when you’re doing something hard or that you don’t want to do? Is it finding ways to laugh? Is it listening to music? Is it taking breaks every now and then? If you can’t think of anything, that’s okay. Maybe you could ask others what helps them to give you ideas. Friend, it sounds like you both found ways to make the hard work of becoming a Big Shot more fun. We sure did.

Little Shot’s friend: When it was a night that didn’t go well, I would listen to my friend and remind her that making mistakes is part of learning. We would still try to laugh and make it fun, but one of our favorite things to do was celebrate progress.

Tasha: Did it have to be big progress?

Little Shot’s friend: No way. The little moments matter, sometimes even more than the big ones. Maybe Little Shot was able to jump a little far. than she ever had or was consistently jumping at a longer distance. That’s when we would dance around singing one of our favorite songs. We would high-five each other. It was fun. Little Shot had done the same for me when I have practiced baking, but everyone will learn more about that in a future book and future podcast episode.

Tasha: I can’t wait to hear more about your baking and perhaps try some of the delicious treats you make. Thank you for sharing the importance of celebrating the small moments. Eventually, those little moments add up to something big, so they do matter.

Little Shot’s friend: Hmm, speaking of small moments, I have an idea.

Tasha: I would love to hear it.

Little Shot’s friend: Let’s do a friendship challenge.

Tasha: What’s a friendship challenge?

Little Shot’s friend: Okay, all my friends listening need to think of one of their friends. Pick one. It can also be a family member or even Little Shot herself. Then do something kind for that person.

Tasha: That is a great idea and so simple. For anybody who picks Little Shot, they can send her an email by going to thelittleshot.com forward slash kids. So they should just do this kind thing once and be done?

Little Shot’s friend: Well, they can, but I hope my friends listening choose to do little kind acts every week or even every day. Can you imagine how much kindness all of us can do together?

Tasha: That’s an amazing way to look at it. We will always need more kindness, and the more we work together, the better. Wrapping things up, I would love to know what it was like seeing Little Shot become a big shot.

Little Shot’s friend: I am happy for my friend. Seeing her live courageously has given me hope that I can live courageously.

Tasha: You know what? She’s done the same for me. There’s something Little Shot started doing that I know you also do now. Will you please share it with everyone?

Little Shot’s friend: After Little Shot became a big shot, she started to keep a big shot journal. She wrote down five key things that she learned about living courageously. I do this too.

Tasha: Yes, her journal is at the back of each book. If our friends listening don’t have a book, that’s okay. They can get her journal page at thelittleshot.com forward slash kids to print it off and color it.

Little Shot’s friend: They can also create their own page with a blank piece of paper and whatever they want to write with. There will be journal ideas at the end of this episode.

Tasha: Great idea. I’m sure our friends are creative. Thank you so much for being here today, Little Shots friend. I am certain you have inspired whoever is listening, wherever they are.

Little Shot’s friend: Thank you for having me. To everyone listening, thank you for being my friend. I believe in you.

Tasha: I enjoyed learning from you today, Little Shot’s friend. Thank you again for being here. And thank you, friends, for joining us today. Remember, every Big Shot started out as a Little Shot. Keep believing, keep practicing, and keep shining your light. Stay tuned after the brief ad to get your Big Shot journal questions and to hear tips for grown-ups.

Tasha: Did you know at the back of every Little Shot book there is a Big Shot journal page? It’s a coloring page for the copy you have at home. Please don’t color the one at your local library. If you can’t write down the journal questions right now, you can access them at thelittleshot.com forward slash kids. If you’re not able to write answers, that’s okay. Draw a picture instead. What is one thing you learned today that you want to try this week? You could journal about one or all three of these things.

1. Who is a friend you want to encourage? You can either tell them, write them a letter, or draw them a picture.

2. What is a mistake you made that made you laugh? It’s important that we don’t always take ourselves so seriously, and laughter can make our workload lighter.

3. What are some things Little Shot’s friend taught you about friendship? How can you be a better friend?

You can answer one or all three of those in your journal by writing about it or drawing a picture. Don’t want to put it on paper? You can talk about it with someone you trust. Every small step takes you closer to becoming a big shot.

Hey, grownups, here are two quick thoughts for you, whether you are a parent, grandparent, or educator.

Number one: I know teaching kids about friendship can be difficult. There are many dynamics at play. There’s also a balance between being kind and standing up for themselves. One friendship tip my illustrator shared with me is something she teaches her students, which I think is great friendship 101 advice. Never make one friend your everything friend. It’s okay to have different friends that you have connections with. Maybe one friend is a running friend. Another is an art friend. Another is a friend who loves reading, et cetera. This helps kids understand how to appreciate something about many people and how to make connections with people.

Number two: You may think I’m on repeat about this, but it is something I’m going to mention a lot. Kids repeat what we do, not what we say. They are paying closer attention than we would probably like. When you make a mistake, how do you respond? I’m not asking you to be perfect. There have been many times that I made a mistake, and my kids saw me start crying or sigh, mutter, and get frustrated. It’s okay for them to see you be human. When I’m setting a better example, I might laugh at the mistake or say, oh, this is no big deal. I can just, you fill in the blank. Or I might pause, take a deep breath and talk myself through it. These actions help them learn how to handle mistakes. Regardless of what we have done in the past, we can keep getting better for ourselves and our kids.

Thank you for listening to today’s episode. To access more free resources, please go to thelittleshot.com forward slash kids. If you like this episode, please share it with a friend, family member, teacher, or someone who needs some hope.

Until next time, I’m Tasha Eizinger, author of The Little Shot series. Keep your chin up, your heart open, and your dreams soaring. Three, two, one. WISHHHH!