One of the many roles parents play in their children’s lives is being a teacher. From the time children are born, parents teach them anything and everything. Nursing and crawling to walking and talking. Reading and writing to riding a bike. The list is lengthy, for sure. Instilling confidence in kids, though, is one of the best lessons you’ll ever teach them. If children are confident as kids, they’ll be confident as adults.
Here are nine ways you can make sure you’re raising confident kids.
Emphasize Effort
Many aspects of life are results-based. For children, though, sometimes it isn’t as much about the results as it is the effort.
Children can control their effort even though they might not be able to control the results. Giving a child positive feedback about their effort shows that hard work is the way to accomplish goals.
Encourage Trying New Things
Children should pursue new activities ranging from playing different sports to learning how to play a musical instrument. Regardless of the success they have, they’ll benefit from the experience. And that experience of not being afraid to try new things will not only build confidence in kids but it will benefit them in their adult years too.
Assign them Tasks Around the Home
There are always chores to do around the home. And keeping the house nice and tidy shouldn’t fall to just mom and dad. Kids can help clean too.
Select tasks that are age-appropriate. Young children can feed the family pet or set the table for dinner while older kids can take out the garbage or mow the lawn. Having these responsibilities helps build confidence in kids while giving them a sense of worth to the family.
Learn from Mistakes
Mistakes tend to be viewed in a negative light. Parents can help their children by focusing on the opportunity to learn from mistakes. Experience is often the best teacher and mistakes are a way for people to learn and grow.
Children shouldn’t associate mistakes with failure. Instead, they should recognize that everyone – even mom and dad – makes mistakes. If they don’t dwell on the mistake, they won’t develop a fear of failure.
Praise them for Handling Adversity
Sooner or later every child will discover that life is not fair. That can be a particularly challenging lesson to grasp. But a little adversity is good for kids. Your child will see that life serves up the occasional bump in the road. Praising them for how they handle adversity will build their confidence so that they can manage larger problems as they age.
Limit the Screen Time
The internet has changed the way the world works. Everyone, including your kids, likes their screen time. But it is one thing to be confident from the safety of the virtual world and quite another in real-life situations.
Positive Self-Talk
Young children have no better role models than their parents. They will do what you do. So, focus on positive self-talk as opposed to the typical self-deprecating remarks that are commonplace among adults.
Children will pick up when you’re being negative about yourself. Hearing positive self-talk will give them the self-confidence they need to deal with challenging tasks.
Give them Attention and Love
Parents want their children to have the best of everything. Sometimes, what they need most is what is easiest to give. Attention and love. Not only do kids crave it, but they need it.
Always let your children know they are loved. Especially when you are upset with them. Knowing you love them boosts their feelings of self-worth.
Don’t Forget Play Time
Kids need to be kids. And sometimes what they want most is to play with you. Playtime not only lets you bond with your children, but it also shows them that they are worth your time.
Parenting is the most rewarding task you will ever undertake. Employing a handful of these strategies will ensure that you are raising confident kids.
