When we are born, our parents are EVERYTHING we have in this world.
They are someone we turn to for support, guidance, and safety. They
are someone we look up to tell us the rules of this mystery we are born
into.
The truth is we are all human and we all make mistakes. However, to a
child’s mind its parents are something A LOT more than just a human.
They are its creators, its caretakers, its guardians, and they’ve
lived here before it was even born. Our mother and father are our
goddess and god when we are young. They are the only thing we are
familiar with in the midst of this vast unknown.
That’s the reason why what parents do and how they behave becomes a crucial part of their children’s psyche.
They are an example mold for our early consciousness, something to look from when it develops our character.
The way we talk to our children becomes their inner voice!
Our brain has a lot more neural connections when we are young. It
absorbs almost everything that happens around us with a purpose to
better adapt in its surroundings.
As we grow up it holds on only to the most used neural connections and it gets rid of everything that we don’t commonly use.
Our mother’s and father’s voice is something that gets integrated deeply into our psyche, it becomes our inner voice.
The way they speak to us becomes the way our inner voice speaks to us, the way we speak to ourselves.
If they are angry most of the time they speak to us, if they are
harsh and cold, if they shout and yell whenever we do something wrong,
that’s how we’ll deal with ourselves whenever we make a mistake. But as
we said, we are all human, we make mistakes and that’s ok. The way you
approach the mistakes is how you learn and overcome them.
How to speak to your child?
An insulting inner voice can prevent us from trying new things by making us feel worthless whenever we make a mistake.
While a friendly inner voice can be our greatest support, guide and motivator in life.
That’s why it is crucial to speak to your child with kindness, love
and honesty even if they make a mistake, or do something wrong.
You will develop a voice inside their head that will support them in
life whenever they need support, even when you are not there.
Or at least you can try to avoid saying these phrases:
They are extremely damaging to a child’s developing character!
“Stop crying right now!”
Usually when a kid does something it knows will be punished for they
start crying. But even though there is no reason for them to cry, that’s
their emotion. They have all the right in the world to express how they
feel. By saying this you are slowly programming your child to suppress
its emotions.
Instead you should kindly say: “It’s ok to cry sweety, it’s ok to show how you feel. But that doesn’t make what you did a right thing to do.” Hug, and explain why it is wrong what they did.
“You are worthless!”
This is possibly the worst thing you can say to a child. Especially
when you are the person and the mental figure they expect most of to be
given approval of. By saying this, you are putting your child on a never
ending journey to seek approval from the outside world. Instead of
helping them find their own worth inside, you are letting them believe
they have nothing inside to find.
There are so many things you can say instead of this, like: “You can do better!”, “Nobody is perfect.”, “It’s not your day, you’ll do better next time.”
“Big boys/girls don’t get scared!”
First of all, why are you lying to your kid. You are probably more
frightened than they are throughout your day. Second, you are forcing
them to reject what they are honestly feeling. Fear is not a bad thing,
it reminds us when to be careful. You should not run away from it but
face it, be aware, learn from it. And real courage is not being
fearless, but facing your fear even if you are terrified.
Instead of this, tell your kid: “It’s ok to be scared
buddy. All of us are scared sometimes. But I know there is courage
inside you that will help you do the right thing even if you are scared.
You are my little hero!”
“I am disappointed in you!”
Parents usually tell this to their children when they already feel
bad. Trying to make them responsible for your disappointment is pretty
selfish. You can be disappointed in a friend, you can be disappointed in
a movie, or even your country’s politics, but you can’t be disappointed
in your child. You are there to let them on a right path. So when they
do something wrong, guide them back. Your disappointment is in your
guidance, not your child. Teach your child what that they did is wrong
and why.
Instead of this, tell your kid: “What you did is wrong,
in my opinion. And I believe you made an honest mistake. Even if you
chose to do what you did, I can assure you’ll realize it’s wrong after I
explain. I know you can do better!”
“You are not [something] enough!”
By saying this to your children you are showing them a pretty
restricted image of themselves. You are implying that there is something
they are lacking in order for them to do what they love or be who they
want to be. Even though you are not saying that they are not enough, you
are programming their mindset that way. They are enough to be
themselves. They always are. A tree is enough to be a tree even when it
is only a seed. But it needs to grow in order to become what it is.
Instead of this, tell your kid: “You are enough to be or
do what you love. But sometimes we all need to train or practice
something before, in order to grow that way.”