Positive Parenting

When your child struggles with a task or assignment, remind him to use his strengths to get over the hump. Keeping an eye on the positive aspects can give a child that assist to overcome the immediate challenge.

It’s important for kids to have that reminder that they are equipped to handle hardships or challenges. Even if they are weak in one area, knowing they are strong in another can be just the impetus they need to turn around and fight to get better in the weak area.

Talk about turning negatives into positives. Every negative has a corresponding positive. With my parent coach clients, I have them pick a positive character trait to focus on, rather than emphasizing the negative. So for a child who needs to work on forgetfulness, the positive opposite might be dependable.

Noticing that each undesirable trait has an opposite constructive one will transform the way you interact with your children. For example, a child who nitpicks has an eye for details—turn that into a strength by helping the child redirect that negative tendency.

Being negative can easily become our default—after all, it’s far easier to point out faults than to uphold strengths. But with concentrated effort, we can have more positive than negative interactions with our kids.

To connect with Sarah and read more about raising kids, visit www.parentcoachnova.com.