5 Ways Parents Can Foster Confidence and Perseverance in their Children

Confidence and perseverance are two of the most needed traits to survive in this cut-throat world. Our children need to develop a “can-do-attitude” in order for them to grow and discover their full potential. A lot of kids though tend to crumble at the first sight of adversity. Some of them also lack courage in facing new challenges.

As parents, we play a huge role in the growth and development of our children. There are a lot of things that we can do to foster confidence and perseverance in our kids. Here are 5 tips that you can start applying today. ‍

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Build a Relationship

‍Do you want to know the secret on how to raise a happy, well-behaved and confident child? It’s really simple - create a closer connection with him.

Sure, we tell our kids that we love them from time to time, but do we really demonstrate this into action? Our children need to feel our love every day. They feel safe and secure when we give them attention and connect with them. We may be present, but sometimes they can’t feel our presence. We may be in the same living room, but sometimes we’re too occupied on our mobile phones. We may live in the same roof, but sometimes we are too focused on other things that we may have taken them for granted.

Invest in quality time with your kids. You may not be together 24/7 but make every seconds worth. Put down your gadgets and give them your undivided attention. Make an effort to know everything that is going on in their lives. When your kids feel that they have your love and support, it boosts their confidence. It can push them to go out of their comfort zone and try new things because regardless of the outcome, they have your back. ‍

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Become a Good Role Model

‍Children are like sponges. They absorb almost everything and tend to follow behaviors that they see on the adults around them. If you want to raise a kid that is confident and resilient, then you have to be one. If there’s one person that they should look up to, it should be you. Become a good role model and show your kid how to handle things with grit and confidence.

Walk the talk. You wouldn’t be able to convince your kid to make friends with other kids when you shy away from people too. You wouldn’t be able to talk your kid into trying new things when you’re sticking on your routines and don’t want to try new things either. Be a brave eagle and show your little ones how to spread their wings and conquer the sky. ‍

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Create a Stress-free Environment‍

If you think that stress is only experienced by adults, think again. Even at a young age, our kids have to deal with stress every day. It is our role as parents to know the stress level of our kids and show them how to de-stress in a healthy manner. You should also endeavor to create a home that is warm, inviting and stress-free.

Here are some tips on how you can reduce or eliminate the stress at home.

• Establish a sleeping routine. Eliminate all possible distractions and create a relaxing and peaceful ambiance so our little ones can get the rest that they need. ‍
• Laugh often. It is known that laughter is good for our health and offers both short-term and long-term benefits. A good hearty laugh can surely melt all the stress away.
• Be affectionate. Show your overflowing love and constantly shower them with affection. Hold them, cuddle on the couch, give them a tight hug and tell them how much you love them. You’ll never know the power of our touch.

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Teach Your Child About Self-regulation

‍Self-regulation is the ability to manage your own reaction and behavior. It is an important part of our kid’s development. Teach your kid how to self-regulate so that he will grow up as a responsible and well-mannered individual.

But how can you teach self-regulation? Do you just give them the look and hope that they will behave? Self-regulation does not need to involve tough discipline nor bribery. One of the most effective ways of teaching your child how to manage his own behavior is by showing your support, especially on times that he needs it the most.Talk about emotions with your kid. Ask him why he behaved that way and what type of emotion triggered the said behavior. Acknowledge that all emotions are valid and show him how to deal with his emotions. Lastly, model self-regulation. Show your kid how to complete a frustrating task with cheerful energy.

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Guide Them on How to Cope with Mistakes and Failure‍

As parents, it is quite natural that we want our kids to excel and succeed. But would you believe that failure is a great thing?

Failure should not be viewed as the opposite of success but rather an important component of success. A lot of great things that we enjoy now are a product of failures. Great things can happen when we learn how to embrace failure. How can we teach our kids how to cope with mistakes and failures?

Here are some of the helpful tips:

• Focus on the learning experience. Failure is inevitable but when we teach our kids how to focus on what went wrong and find ways on how to fix it, it provides a positive learning experience.
• Embrace and celebrate failure. Challenging experiences provide a great opportunity for our kids to develop problem-solving and coping skills.
• Shift your attention to the positive aspects of failure. Instead of sheltering your kids from failure, use it as a learning experience. Help them learn from their errors. Brainstorm with them and ask questions like “What did you think went wrong?” or What would you differently next time?

When our kids know how to cope with mistakes and failure, they will never stop trying new things and would do everything to achieve their goal, regardless of how many times they fail.