Most children have messy rooms from time to time. Set reasonable standards and communicate effectively to make cleaning fun and efficient. You’ll be rewarded with a better relationship with your kids and a neater home.
One thing that I’ve learned through my own personal highs and lows is that every day presents opportunities to build confidence in my kids. No matter what is happening around, there are a few simple actions I can take every day that will help them grow in confidence. When these seven things are done consistently over time, they send a very clear message that children are loved, cared for, and believed in by their dad.
Getting ready for back to school can become a true issue if your child is anxious about school. Research shows that today children are dealing with much higher levels of anxiety compared to kids of previous generations. Some experts call it an epidemic. So it figures that school, being such a big part of children’s lives, would be a source of anxiety for some kids.
Whatever you do, whatever your rules and curfews are, remember that your ability to understand and influence your teenager starts with a good relationship. A good relationship helps you talk to each other, including conversations about rules and expectations.
Sometimes family life is all consuming and you just need time to yourself. That’s why it’s even more important to find positive ways to connect before life gets crazy. In fact, connecting better creates more opportunity to create healthy boundaries. It also models to your family how to manage relationships in challenging times.
If we’re ever going to change the perception of dads, it requires us to drive the change in how we show up for our family. And that takes our full energy and commitment! Putting in the energy needed to build relationships can be exhausting, but it’s worth it. When you know what drains your energy vs what recharges your energy, you can make choices that maximize the return.