3 Ways To Instill Self-Respect in Your Child
The more you spend time with your children, the more insight you might have into how they view themselves. With teenagers, they can very easily barricade themselves away, and we don’t get an insight into the thought processes anymore. In one respect, we can leave them to their own devices, but if it’s got to the point where they are withdrawing and are not keen to talk about their problems, negative thought patterns and a lack of self-respect can soon follow. It’s so important to build self-respect, and this is one of the healthiest habits for children to develop confidence and responsibility, but how can we do this?
Model the Manners You Would Like to See in Your Kids
It’s important for children to observe respectful behavior before they can repeat it. If you are focusing on the negative aspects of life constantly, this is sending a clear message that this is an okay way to think. Sometimes, we can get to the root cause of a lack of self-respect because it’s something like an image issue. But while small image issues can be fixed, for example, crooked teeth can be fixed by invisible braces, the reality is about demonstrating a love of oneself, rather than giving your child the signals that being negative is okay. This is the root of all notions of self-respect.
Allow Your Children to Debate
Sometimes, children will say “no,” and when they are of toddler age and you can have a conversation with them, it’s important to ask them why they are saying this. Because it’s so easy for us to shut them down when they are refusing to do something, for example asking them to hug a grandparent when they don’t want to, but if we become insistent on these things, we are not allowing our children to make their own decisions. Your child has a right to make decisions based on what they want to do and what they don’t want to do.
Showing Appreciation and Praise
There is a double-edged sword with praise because if you overpraise, this can build up a false sense of security, but at the same time, when you are looking to help your child respect themselves, it’s about making them realize that they are doing good things. This is why it’s important to validate the idea of hard work. It’s not just about the final product, but it’s about making sure that you tell your child that you appreciate how hard they worked on a project because this will make them realize that their efforts matter, which will build perseverance. It’s also important to tell children what you appreciate about them, for example, their behaviors, or just being who they are. When you start to point out the good things about children, it will make them love and respect themselves more, and after a while, they won’t have to think about it.
Getting your child to respect themselves isn’t something that happens overnight, but it is a process. If you start now, it will begin to work wonders for your children in the long run.
