by Mandy Newell
Counsellor and Project Support
Confidence starts from being a confident parent
New parents get given a lot of information and some of that conflicts with what they think is right for their child, well meaning family members or friends might have their input, social media posts might show that one perfect image from 100 pictures taken, and it’s easy for doubt to creep in.
Being a confident parent means trusting in your own choices and knowing that what you’re doing is best for YOUR child. It is also about being confident to ask for help when you need it.
Confidence in children doesn’t always mean a child having loads of friends or being loud and entertaining. Confidence can look like a quiet child who is good at learning or problem solving, it can look like a child who is good at making Youtube videos or new levels on a computer game. But most importantly confidence can be impacted by those around us.
Here are ten top tips for helping to raise a confident child
- Model confidence in yourself.
- Don’t get upset about mistakes, this is how we learn.
- Encourage them to try new things, but don’t get angry if they don’t as it might not be the thing for them.
- Help kids find their passion, choose hobbies which encourage these.
- Allow kids to fail, failure will encourage them to do better next time and learn that not everything goes well the first time.
- Praise Perseverance.
- Set Goals, this is a life skill.
- Rules, let them help choose what rules need to be in place. Having choices and creating choice helps people stick to rules better.
- Be there. Children who know they have a safe adult who is always there for them, often make better life choices and have someone to go to if things go wrong.
- Embrace imperfection – perfection is unrealistic. We are all perfectly imperfect.
If you feel that you or your child need some support on improving your confidence, then please contact us at Aspiring Futures.