How can positive parenting encourage personal development for your family?
Have you been struggling to practice positive parenting and need some motivation? Or do you need to know more about the benefits that it can bring you and your child?
Then allow me to share the 10 ways that positive parenting can encourage personal development for your whole family.
I remember going through a phase of yelling and punishing my eldest daughter, Arianna, because that was how I grew up and all I knew at the moment.
But then I discovered positive parenting, and it has not only removed the fear that Arianna had of making mistakes but also improved our mother-daughter relationship.
Of course, I am still not the perfect parent, and positive parenting is very much a work in progress, but it has made my parenting journey so much easier.
So read on to find out how can positive parenting encourage personal development for you and your child.
How Positive Parenting Can Encourage Personal Development
For your child:
- Helps regulate emotions
- Increases self-esteem and confidence
- Teaches responsibility and accountability
- Encourages risk-taking and trying new things
- Increases resilience
For you:
- Improves EQ
- Helps to let go of the ego
- Improves problem-solving skills
- Be a good role model
- Be kinder
Related Posts:
A Simple Guide to the ABCs of Positive Parenting
10 Best Positive Discipline Tips In Everyday Parenting
30 Best Positive Parenting Quotes to Inspire You
What Is Positive Parenting?
Parents who practice positive parenting don’t use harsh punishments to correct problematic behavior. Instead, children are disciplined in a way that builds their self-esteem and focuses on developing a strong parent-child relationship based on mutual respect.
For example, if your child starts to throw a tantrum in public, instead of yelling and hitting them, you can calmly tell them that they need to stop, or you will have to leave the store and go home. If the behavior continues, then you will have to see through the consequence, ie, leave immediately.
Positive parenting is a parenting style that assumes all children are born good and with the desire to do the right thing. Therefore, the focus is on nurturing good behavior rather than punishing bad behavior.
How Can Positive Parenting Encourage Personal Development For A Child?
Positive parenting can help encourage a child’s personal development in the following ways:
Helps Regulate Emotions
Young children have a difficult time regulating their emotions because their “upstairs” brain is not fully developed to exercise logic, reasoning, and self-control yet. Hence, when a child gets worked up, they really have no control over their emotions.
Accept and empathize with all of your child’s feelings. This can comfort them when they are in distress and open them up to verbalizing how they feel, paving the way toward emotional development.
When they are calmer, we can help them reflect on their behavior and guide them on more appropriate ways to handle their emotions.
Increases Self-Esteem And Confidence
When we can stay calm and show empathy, no matter their feelings, our children can feel secure knowing that we’ve always got their backs.
Conversely, if we constantly threaten them with punishment and reprimand them over every single mistake, it can breed insecurity over fear of punishment.
A positive home environment also makes them feel more confident and increases their self-esteem. Praise and encourage them often so that they learn to see the good in themselves and feel good about their accomplishments.
Teaches Responsibility And Accountability
The positive parenting approach does not mean permissive parenting. There are clear parental expectations and consistent boundaries as to what behavior is allowed and not.
Trust that your child can make their own choices. Even when they make poor ones, make space for natural consequences to kick in instead of punishing or shaming them for it.
When children know that their actions have consequences, it will help them develop an understanding of personal responsibility. They’ll learn that they need to take care of themselves, their belongings, and others around them.
Encourages Risk-Taking And Trying New Things
The best way to encourage children to try new things is to provide them with enough security and self-confidence.
When children see mistakes as a learning point, they will be more likely to take risks and explore their world.
It’s important that we set a positive example by doing the same things ourselves- being adventurous and taking on new challenges can encourage our children to do the same.
Increases Resilience
Children who have supportive parents learn to recover quickly from setbacks. They develop a positive self-image because of the positive environment that they are in, and this helps them bounce back from difficult experiences.
Allow your child to feel frustrated and any other strong negative emotions that may arise when things don’t go their way.
Show empathy and focus on giving them encouragement. You can even offer to problem-solve together to show them that you understand and support them.
How Can Positive Parenting Encourage Personal Development For Parents?
Positive parenting isn’t just helpful for children. Practicing it at home has seen me grow in the following ways:
Improves EQ
Not using any negative disciplinary approaches has forced me to deal with my own emotions firsthand.
Instead of yelling, punishing, and shaming my girls, I have had to find ways to connect and build a respectful relationship with them. And it all involves me being in tune with my own feelings and being able to regulate and express them in a healthy manner.
Even when they throw tantrums and are illogical, knowing that the behavior is out of their control helps me see things differently and stay calm for everyone’s sake.
Helps To Let Go Of The Ego
It’s not about winning the fight with our children. This revelation has led to huge self-growth for me.
Learning which fight is worth fighting isn’t easy, but it is a valuable lesson that I am so grateful to have learned.
I grew up in a home where mistakes were not tolerated and usually punished. Now, I realize that being harsh doesn’t help and will only make things worse.
Instead, listening to their needs and showing kindness is so much more effective than being right.
Improves Problem-Solving Skills
I have also had to come up with creative ways to get my girls to listen to me.
Having gone through a complete mindset shift from being a recovering yeller finds me offering positive reinforcement, encouragement, and even being silly when times are good so that I can build a strong connection with my girls.
I still expect pushback and defiance, but I find that offering them choices and giving them a sense of control lessens the effect somewhat. All this requires thinking on the feet!
Be A Good Role Model
As positive parents, we have to practice what we preach. If we want to see a change in our child’s behavior, we have to first model it.
If we want our children to respect us, we must show them the same respect and not use our position to yell at or shame them.
If we want them to be hardworking and do their chores, we must lead by example and show them that we also work hard and do our part for the family.
Children rarely do what we say, but they certainly do what we do.
Be Kinder
It can be so easy to yell and punish when children make mistakes and do the wrong things. But if we don’t build a strong connection with them from early childhood, we are just setting them up for further misbehavior.
Instead, what our children really need in times of distress is our understanding, empathy, and kindness.
But we can’t show kindness to our children without first being kind to ourselves. It’s hard being a parent, and we deserve all the support that we can get.
Shower yourself with self-care every day, and use only positive self-talk, and you will see it manifesting itself in your interactions with your children.
Questions:
How Do Parents Contribute To Your Personal Development?
Parents can provide encouragement, support, and access to activities that enable the child to master key developmental tasks. As primary caregivers, parents are also a child’s first teachers and serve as role models in helping a child develop to their full potential.
What Are The Impacts Of Positive Parenting On A Child’s Overall Development?
Research has shown that positive parenting contributes to higher school grades, fewer behavior problems, less substance abuse, better mental health, greater social competence, and more positive self-concepts. Parents who are warm, nurturing, and supportive can reinforce good behavior without resorting to harsh discipline.
What Is The Purpose Of Positive Parenting?
Children learn to follow the rules and regulate their feelings in a positive parenting household. When parents use a positive approach to guide and encourage their children, this respectful relationship motivates positive behavior and instills confidence. Consistent boundaries also give children the courage to explore and learn new skills.
Conclusion:
Parenting can be a very challenging task. However, with the right approach and techniques, it can become enjoyable and help you grow as well.
In my opinion, the most important home remedy to encourage personal development in your children is positive parenting, love, and affection. When we are surrounded by loving people, it makes life’s ups and downs that much easier to handle.
The best part about practicing positive parenting is building a strong relationship with your children. It really is worth all the effort. So start practicing today.
Share any experience you have when it comes to positive parenting, and also let me know how it has impacted personal development in your family!
Related Posts:
20 Positive Parenting Affirmations You Need to Learn
15 Positive Affirmations for Parents That Will Change Your Life
Thnx!