5 rock-solid ways to turn your child into a leader
There is no greater joy in this world than to see your child succeed and be happy in their life.
Leadership is an important component to success in any area of life.
So then, what is leadership? Leadership is a process of social influence which maximizes the efforts of others, which also includes oneself. Leadership is singular; It starts with self. It is a commitment; a way of life and a strong personal need. The whole idea of leadership is to find what a person resonates with most and develop it.
As a parent, the question you need to ask is: “Do I want MY child to be a leader or a follower ?”
This starts with a look inwards as a parent and an individual. It is proven that children don’t do what they are told, but rather they imitate what they see. Which means as parents, we need to develop and display leadership qualities within ourselves.
HOW CAN YOU HELP ?
As a parent, one very important thing we can do is keep the child in your child alive. Nurture the essence of your child. Actually encourage, applaud and develop the odd and weird traits and see how that can be applied as a strength. These weird qualities are actually trying to tell you something, try to get to the bottom of that. I agree this is easier said than done, hence patience and active listening are two key skills that you need to continue to practice.
Teach your children to do their best and not worry about comparing themselves to other people.
It is OK to make mistakes. Parents can easily obsess about achievement, because they believe that this will make their children high-achievers. In reality, fixating on only achievement can create all sorts of problems for children. Especially when it comes to leadership, where focusing on individual achievement gives kids the wrong idea about how work really gets done. In other words, the best leaders surround themselves with great people, because they know they cannot do it alone. Children that are obsessed with achievement are so focused on awards and outcomes that they can never fully understand this.
Teach your children the power and importance of not quitting and fulfilling their commitments in life.
It is OK to fail sometimes. In business and in life success is driven by risk. When parents go overboard on protecting their children, they don’t allow them to take risks and experience the consequences. When a person isn’t allowed to fail, they don’t and can’t understand the risk. A leader can’t take appropriate risks until they know the bitter taste of failure that comes with taking a risk and coming up short. The road to success is paved with failure. When you try to shield your children from failure in order to boost their self¬esteem, they can have trouble tolerating the failure required to succeed as a leader.
Teach your children to ask better questions and be creative in finding solutions to life’s challenges.
There is a certain self sufficiency that comes with being a leader. When you are the one making the calls, you should also be the one to stay behind and clean up the mess that is created. When parents constantly solve their children’s problems for them, children can never develop the critical ability to stand on their own feet. Children who always have someone swooping in to rescue them and clean up their mess spend their whole lives waiting for this to happen. Leaders take action and they take charge. They are responsible and accountable. It is important that your children learn this as they grow up.
Teach your children to say “Yes I can!”
As a leader, confidence is key. When a person believes that they can accomplish a goal, they are more focused, willing, and driven to accomplish that goal.
Originally published at zenparent.in.
