Why do we need our self-esteem to be raised? People with high self-esteem are more successful in life.Two years ago I attended Urania Cremene‘s seminar , “Raising my child’s self-esteem”. The meeting reminded parents about the benefits of increased self-esteem, what it means and how to get there. I really enjoyed this campaign, aligned with my efforts to promote the importance of self-esteem and confidence in a child’s own strengths. Read the full article Self-esteem develops in childhood.
Building self-esteem takes time
Ask yourself:What do I want my child to be like when he or she is 20 years old? Will you do this imaginative exercise? My answers are: self-confident, persevering, having a point of view. I also wish he had the courage to speak his mind, be respectful, loving, empathetic, patient, etc. The question you need to ask yourself is:
What do I do now to make him have these qualities in fifteen years?
How can you cultivate your child’s self-esteem?
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- Start when the child is young, delay his wish fulfillment even for30 seconds when he asks for something.
- Teach him to manage his emotions. When he asks for something with a tantrum, wait for him to calm down and grant his wish afterwards. Of course, he doesn’t know how to do it, so you’ll have to explain that deep breathing helps and practice with him at times when he’s quiet.
- When he wants something from me and I’m trained in another discussion I’ve set up for him to come over and put his hand on me, I do the same so he knows I understand and I stop and pay attention when I can interrupt.
- She purposely delays getting things she wants. Vlad for example wants a new backpack and we agreed that we’d buy it in a month when the school discount period starts, because it’s past the start of the year.
- Take turns – children are willing to wait for things they enjoy, such as a board game where all the participants roll the dice or stand in line to buy a pancake, etc. Create the context for waiting as often as possible.
- Pocket money collected over several months to get something you want is a great exercise in laying the groundwork for financial literacy and exercising patience.
- When he tells me to wait because he needs to finish a game or a conversation with a friend, I wait. That way he will have my model that he can copy. Read 11 steps to a child’s increased self-esteem.
Click on the link to sign up for the 8 and 9.05 Self-esteem online workshopIf you would like support in helping your child have a high self-esteem, sign up for the 8 and 9.05 Self-esteem workshop, which is for children aged 9-12. Click on the link to register. We look forward to seeing you! 