One of the undeniable facts of life is that parenting is a difficult job. What’s more, there are a number of factors that make parenting even more challenging when compared to other difficult jobs. For instance, there are no breaks when it comes to parenting. From the moment you wake up to the moment you go to bed and all those hours in between, you’re a parent. Similarly, there’s no training program when it comes to being a good parent. It’s not like receiving PASMA training in Newcastle before you’re able to scale a building; instead, you’re thrown into the deep end and have to learn as you go. As a result, a number of parents are left wondering how to be a better parent. While there’s no one way to parent, detailed below are some of the top tips to bear in mind if you want to be a better parent.
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Be Flexible
First things first, flexibility is key. For instance, if you have more than one child, the disciplinary techniques you use on your two-year-old likely won’t work for your 12-year-old. Even if your children are of similar ages, they might not respond in the same way to certain parenting tactics. Every child is different, and it’s about adapting your parenting to suit the needs of each of your children. What’s more, children are set to grow and change more so than at any other point in their lives, so their responses to certain parenting techniques might change. You should roll with these changes and adapt your parenting accordingly.
Allow Mistakes to Happen
No one is a fan of making mistakes, nor is any parent a fan of having to deal with or fix their child’s mistakes. Despite this, mistakes are incredibly valuable to a child’s development, as there’s no better way to learn how to do something right than to do it wrong first. As a result, it’s important that parents allow their children to make mistakes and don’t come down too hard on them for doing so. This even applies to children in their younger years R don’t show them how to do something immediately; allow them to play around and figure it out for themselves. They may get a little frustrated in the process, but it’s much more valuable for them to learn this way.
Walk the Walk
Children are like sponges; they absorb everything that they see and hear, including how you act as a person. Since you’re your child’s first role model, they look up to you and see everything you do as correct. So, if you want your child to be kind, patient, and respectful, you should express these behaviors in your day-to-day life. This includes how you interact with your children. Too many parents think that they don’t have to pay their children respect due to the parent-child hierarchy. Despite this, if you don’t show your child respect, they’ll fail to respect you and won’t think it important to respect others either.
Don’t Use Labels or Comparison
Labels and comparisons simply aren’t beneficial to a child’s or parent’s well-being. As previously mentioned, every child is different, and this means not comparing your little one to the “norm”. Your friend’s eight-month-old might already be saying words, while your nine-month-old might not have made a sound yet. Neither of these is more normal than the other, and every child develops at a different pace. This isn’t to say that you shouldn’t voice your concerns with a pediatrician; you absolutely should, but try not to panic unless you’re given reason to.