As parents, watching your kids succeed is one of the best feelings in the world. This is exactly why it is so hard to see them fail and even harder to let them do it. There is a balance that has to happen between failure, success, and parental assistance.
Why we should change how we use the word “Careful”
For me, one of the hardest habits to break has been using the word “careful.” Using “careful” felt like a cop-out that didn’t accomplish much. Instead, I started saying why she should be careful.
“Know where you are on the bed before you jump over the dog.”
“We don’t jump down the stairs while you are still learning to walk.”
Saying “Careful” is easier. But, if she can start to understand why she needs to be careful, she can start connecting to her choices.
What are the advantages of failure?
The biggest advantage of letting kids takes risks is the feeling of success our little ones can get from accomplishing things on their own. Starting at a young age, we can start instilling an attitude of positivity and success. As kids go about their day they are faced with all kinds of new things. The younger they are the more new tasks they will face regularly.
As hard as it is, sit back and let them go through their own trial and error. You will see a level of relentlessness well beyond that of the average adult. Eventually they will succeed. At that exact moment, a new brain synopsis will be created that contributes to their mental growth.
Struggle is not something we should be teaching our kids to shy away from. How many times have you seen an adult who is so uncomfortable around change they will do anything to avoid it?
I like to think I am providing options for my little girl from a young age. I hope this will help her to be a better decision maker later in life. So far, this has created a very opinionated one -and-a-half-year-old. But, hopefully, it will all work out in the end.
I do believe there are far more lessons to be learned outside the walls of ours and our children’s comfort zones.
There is much to be learned from getting outside and letting our kids try new things, even if they mess up. It is our job to build them up in such a way that their failure is just a bump in the road to success.