What Does Your Daughter Hear Each Time You Tell Her She's Pretty?

It's funny how our society raises its girls to be all 'lady like'. We teach them to smile coyly, talk softly and look beautiful. If she so much as falls and scrapes her knee, we run to pick her up and tell her the scar won't fade (not heal). Every fairytale tells her about the stunning princess who gets swept off her feet by the handsome prince. From the moment she takes her first step, we instill in her a sense of being a 'girl' - delicate, dainty and a damsel (in distress?).

But have you stopped to wonder what your little girl hears each time you tell her she's pretty? This insightful video can help.

In an attempt to encourage girls to choose science and technology over make-up and fashion, Verizon and MAKERS have come up with a beautiful video called Inspire Her Mind. They show us how we're probably curbing our daughters' curiosity each time we tell them not to dirty their pretty dresses or play with those rocks in the playground. Would it be such a bad thing if she decides to ride a bike herself as opposed to riding pillion demurely behind a boy? Or even open up her computer and replace the old RAM with a new one.

It's high time we let our girls decide what they want to do. If she decides to pick up a machine drill and bore holes in the wall to hang 'pretty' pictures, she should be allowed to do so. And no, her brother need not help her with it.

"Our words can have a huge impact. Isn't it time we told her she's pretty brilliant, too?" says Reshma Saujani, founder of Girls Who Code.

Take a look at this wonderful video. You may realise the slight flaw in the way we're bringing our girls up. Let's inspire our girls to change the world, not their clothes.