Building confidence in children is one of the most important tasks that come with the role of a parent. Although ensuring your child’s needs are met and providing unconditional love to them is crucial for a healthy and happy childhood, once they’re all grown up, they need to be ready to face the challenges that life puts in their way, which means you need to start preparing them for life early on.
Here’s how you can boost your child’s self-esteem and set them up for success.
Praise your child’s efforts…
Show your child you believe in them. If they get a good grade, praise their efforts. Don’t scold them if they get a bad grade though – instead, promise to work with them and keep that promise.
When they help out with household chores (given that they are appropriate for them), be sure to reward their efforts and praise them for a job well done. Other than helping you out, these small jobs are also beneficial for their confidence, as they give them a sense of contribution to the household while also teaching them responsibility. Remember to praise both the task and the child, but don’t overdo it, otherwise, it may lead them to seek approval for everything they do in life.
…But know when to step back as well
As much as you’d like to spend every minute of the day with your children, there really is no need for hovering over your kids all day long. In fact, doing things for your child when they’re perfectly capable of doing them on their own can actually be detrimental to their self-esteem, doing more harm than good. Although parents always have the best intentions for their children, sometimes kids are better off facing challenges without any help from their parents.
Step back, relax, and let them do things on their own – be there just in case they might need you, but let them take healthy risks and solve problems using their own skills. This will help them become more competent and prepare them for the real world.
Work on improving their skills
Every child has specific skills and abilities they acquire pretty easily. While there are subjects they excel in sans stress, there are also subjects they might be struggling with. For example, a child can be a real math whiz or a musical prodigy yet have a hard time learning a language, especially a second language like English.
In that case, parents need to pitch in and look for ways to work on the child’s skills in order to improve them. For a child struggling with English, looking for a top English learning centre in their area is a sure way to boost their skills. With the help of trained educators, your child will learn how to use the language with confidence, thus helping them overcome their shyness and improve their self-esteem.
Set a good example for them
You can be your child’s number one fan, rooting for them and encouraging them to do better, yet, all that can be quite futile if you don’t mirror the actions yourself.
That’s why you as a parent ought to practice what you preach. Be positive as much as you can to inspire confidence in your child. Even if things don’t always go your way, that’s not the reason to feel discouraged. Instead, remain real and truthful to yourself and what you believe in, and your children, as it’s in their nature to mirror their parent’s behavior, will follow suit.
Self-confidence isn’t a character trait – rather, it’s something we acquire throughout life, and the earlier it’s taught, the better. To be able to deal with obstacles head-on, children need to trust in their skills and abilities and value themselves, and for that to happen, they need to be raised with confidence. Follow these tips to help your child develop positive self-esteem and ensure they’re well-equipped for whatever lies before them.