A to Z of Parenting

• Allowance: The earlier children understand the importance of earning, saving, and managing their money, the better prepared they will be to manage their money.
• Back Talk: Sometimes children are simply testing their powers while at other times it could be that they feel that they have been treated disrespectfully.
• Chores: Kids need to know they are important and useful as contributing members of your family.
• Defiance, Disobedience, and Rebelliousness: Defiant, disobedient, and rebellious children are gifts sent to parents who need to practice inviting cooperation instead of practicing power over others or being too lenient.
• Electronics : Eliminate the ‘battle’ by deciding what you will do, being kind and firm, and getting children involved in creating healthy guidelines for the use of electronic equipment.
• Fears: Fears are usually about the unknown; however there are times when children have good reasons to be afraid. It’s your job to know when to protect your children and when to help them without overprotecting them.
• Good  Child: Placing too much emphasis on children being consistently good has some potential dangers. It is easy for these children to create the belief that they aren’t worthwhile unless they are always good.
• Homework:  Kids who think homework is more important to their parents than it is to them don’t take the responsibility on themselves.
• Internally Referenced: Encourage your children to be able to make their own decisions and stick to them rather than be influenced by external factors.
• Journey: Encourage an enjoyment of the journey: they don’t have to grow up too quickly. Childhood is a necessary developmental period. Don’t rush it.
• Kind, Unconditional love: We have to teach our children the importance of kindness and being kind to others. The Key to Great Parenting is unconditional love.
• Lying : Usually children lie for the same reasons as adults do - they feel trapped, are scared of punishment or rejection, feel threatened, or just think lying will make things easier for everyone.
• Manipulation : Manipulation is learned behavior. Many parents don’t realize how they teach manipulation “in the name of love”. Children would not use manipulative behavior if it was not effective.
• Negative Child: Negative kids often develop their attitudes and behaviors as a way of finding a unique spot in the family, rebelling from controlling parents, or reacting to parents who are always trying to make them happy.
• Obedience: Teaching children to be obedient can be dangerous in today’s society. It is better to teach children cooperation, problem-solving skills, and respect for themselves and others. Children need guidance, not punishment.
• Procrastination: It is normal to procrastinate when we know we “should” do something we do not want to do but are supposed to do according to someone else. People who procrastinate are probably unaware of the purpose behind their behavior.
• Quit: Tell them that this is a word that should never be part of their vocabulary. Encourage them to never be a quitter and to always persevere.
• Responsibility: This is also one of the most important things you can instill in your children. You must teach them to be responsible and to take responsibility for their actions.
• Success: Help your child understand what success really is. To achieve that, they will have to put aside much ‘good’ advice of others and learn to be true to themselves.
• Trust: We must ensure that our children know they can trust us on every level and that they can depend on us.
• Unmotivated and Uninterested: A child who lacks motivation presents one of the most challenging and discouraging situations a parent faces. The challenge is to stop doing things that don’t work and take time to find ways to encourage both themselves and their children.
• Values: We need to teach our children to value themselves, others and things around them.
• Work Ethic   : We need to show our children the value of a strong work ethic in everything they do. From cleaning up their toys, to school work, and to working a job- they need to have a strong work ethic in all areas.
• Example : We must be an example to our children, be their role model; and someone they can look up to.
• Yin and Yang : Success for your child will be the interaction of complementary forces. They'll need to fail to learn. They'll need to have some upsets to understand real friendship.
• Zeal : Teach your children to be eager, enthusiastic, and to have desire for something. To be zealous is to be diligent and devoted. 

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