How to Raise a Successful Child

How to Raise Self-reliant Children

How does your child define success? Do you let them define what success should be according to you? If you asked your child what success means, you’ll probably hear a different story.

In a recent survey of school children, aged between 5 and 16, it was found that most children believe the secret to being a successful grown-up was being ‘happy’.

Yes, it was not the fast cars, stashed money or even being famous! Success simply meant happiness! And we should let them believe that.

Ways to Raise a Happy Child

If you want to raise a successful child, know their abilities. The abilities should be determined by what he or she is capable of doing and not how some book defines it or what you wish they were capable of doing.

For example, you can’t push a two-year-old child to colour within the lines when all that they want to do is scribble! Pushing for neatness can make them dislike the activity altogether.

As a parent, increase their chances of success by indulging in those activities that match his/her abilities. When they begin to fine-tune their abilities, they will be more successful. Success is not limited to one area in life. It’s a holistic approach!

Let’s look at a few areas where it is important to be successful and what you as a parent can do to help them get there.

Inculcate Healthy Habits

It’s a known fact that performance levels drop if you are not physically feeling well. Following healthy habits leads to better performance. It is important that they choose healthy habits that will help them in the long-run.

As a parent ensure that you encourage them to follow a routine that can give them the best of both worlds – rest and energy. Follow a bedtime routine, let them eat well and limit their time with gadgets.

Teach Social Skills

While we all want our children to excel in life through academics, we forget to instill social skills in them. After all, it is the need of the hour! Confidence, self-control, empathy, communication, and co-operation are some of the attributes that fall under social skills.

As a parent, you can contribute to their social skills by making them feel confident about their decisions or interacting with people. Teach them the value of sharing, talk to them often so that they know how important it is to build a conversation and communicate.

Talk!

It is a task to sometimes get out information from your child. When my boys were younger, I did a lot of role play to understand how the school was and how their friends were.

Talking with them always made me aware of what their fears were or what they loved the most. When you speak to them give them a chance to express what they feel.

Parents who take out time to be in the moment and be present can have a lasting impact on the child. It gives the child a sense of security that they can reach out to you at any point of time and trust you. Take out the time to praise them on getting a good grade or excelling in a task at school or home.

Read the rest of the post that was originally published in The Quint.

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