Steph Curry Keeps Hitting the Shots that Matter.

Steph Curry knows what it’s like to be overlooked. “Coming up through basketball, I didn’t pass the eye test,” he says. “I was a late bloomer.”

For Curry, being a “late bloomer” only motivated him. He developed a strong work ethic and didn’t let failure stop him from learning and getting better.

In their critical development years, kids need encouragement. They need to know that failure is only temporary and that confidence is a skill to be learned alongside physical skills. Unfortunately, many children learn too late how to turn challenges into victories.

Curry’s second children’s book, “I Am Extraordinary,” shares his approach with youngsters everywhere. Its lead character is a girl named Zoe, who is self-conscious about wearing hearing aids. The story features an animated version of Curry who offers encouragement: “There will always be obstacles in life. But those obstacles aren’t there to stop you. They’re there to challenge you,” he explains. “It’s up to you to find the courage and the strength to overcome them.”

At a time when schoolchildren are struggling to make up for classroom time lost during the pandemic, the book couldn’t be more appropriate. Many kids are discouraged with their progress. Making up for lost time takes more work than a regular school year provides.

There are also the everyday challenges of fitting in, low self-esteem and just plain feeling different. The message to believe in yourself is the mantra Curry has lived by to become one of the greatest shooters ever to play basketball.

Off the court, his mission is to change the world, saying, “I have an interest in leveraging every part of my influence for good in a way that I can.” That effort includes investing millions of dollars in literacy programs in the Bay Area, where Steph and his wife Ayesha launched their Eat.Learn.Play. Foundation in their adopted hometown of Oakland. “We focus on three vital pillars of a healthy childhood: nutrition, literacy and physical activity,” says Steph Curry.

Being overlooked or underappreciated is something we can all relate to. But with a bit of encouragement and the right mentorship, we can change directions and move forward a step at a time. Confidence is what carries us beyond our challenges and keeps us coming back, even when we lose.

Curry makes scoring points look easy. He shoots three-point shots with a grace and ease that make us forget about all the hard work he has put in. His affable smile and delightful moments with his young daughter lead us to believe that everything comes easy to the superstar.

But don’t be fooled: Curry has taken his lumps and worked his way to the top. He knows what it takes to be your best. Sometimes, it’s just a matter of finding the right question. “So, what makes you extraordinary?” Curry asks us all.

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