By: Aradhana Pandey
You’re the sharp millennial parent who is aware of the changing times. You experiment with unconventional parenting trends. You’ve seen people parenting with utmost care and scrutiny. But you’ve also witnessed that children didn’t quite learn what their parents intended to teach them. You wondered where it all went wrong. My friend, one doesn’t learn until one doesn’t watch. So to cultivate all the important virtues in your child, you’ll need to assimilate them first. But what are the values and how do they impact my kid, you ask? Here is how.
- Be truthful
Honesty isn’t called the best policy for nothing. Being truthful is the one way to cultivate honesty in your child. When your children see that you’re transparent and truthful to not only just them but also to others, they will automatically start being honest to people around them. Just like the positive feedback effect of the chaos theory, when you start being honest, you’ll receive the same in return. Explain to your kid what effects honesty has on the personal relationships.
- Be generous
Charity is an important moral value. Human beings are social beings. We live in communities. And charity is one way to build the community you’re in and make it better. When your children see you donating, they will adopt it and grow up less self-less. Another positive effect of charity is that your children will slowly realize the importance of whatever they have. They will learn to be happy and content, instead of being greedy. Take them along when you go to volunteer for any social causes and explain the importance of volunteering to them. You’ll see the impact slowly, and it will stay with them for a lifetime.
- Be positive
Do you think your cousin is better looking than you are? Or that your neighbor is smarter than you are? If you constantly whine about things like these, then it is time to stop. Push all your insecurities away. When your kids notice this, they too will dwell upon their weaknesses and complain all the time. Instead of this, cultivate positivity and focus on your strengths. Explain the same to your children. Teach them how to play their strengths. Also, teach them to ignore haters and accept constructive criticism.
- Be accepting
Do you want your kid to be a racist or a homophobe? No right? So how do you eliminate all the hatred he witnesses outside? By being a liberal and accepting individual. Put all the parameters of wealth, caste, gender, sexuality away, and treat everyone with respect. When your children watch you being polite and respectful to others, they will imbibe it. And in due course, when they fight their battles, they will understand the importance of the accepting nature and learn to be supportive to people in need.
5.Be open
Imagine that your teenage kid had lied about the sleepover she had with her friend. Instead of getting mad and yelling at her, stop for a moment and think what made her lie? Is it you? Are you extremely strict? A lot of parents don’t realize that they have become controlling and scary, as they try to overprotect their children. This will not only make them lie to you, but also do things secretly. The worst part is that they may not approach you even in times of dire. Especially, be rational and open while raising teenagers.
Children may not readily agree or do whatever you teach them. But actions speak louder than words, remember? So when you stay grounded and be a responsible adult, you’ll automatically be a responsible parent. And as kids learn everything off from their parents, you will nurture them with all the necessary values and ethics which will stay with them for a lifetime.
