Self-confidence is one of the most important characteristics a child needs for a comfortable life both in childhood and subsequently in adulthood. This is the trait that can and should be developed from early childhood. How to do this – we give some advice from psychologists.
Show love and acceptance
The key word here is manifest. The child should know that you love him, despite his shortcomings, accept and respect his choice. Feeling manifestations of love, understanding that it is respected, the child will grow up confident in his abilities and capabilities.
Allow your child to make their own decisions
Where possible, always try to give your child a choice. Decision making is an important life skill for self-confidence. The ability to decide independently inspires the child and gradually teaches responsibility for their decisions. It is important that the choice that the child has is healthy – such that in no case will it harm the child. For example, a child may choose to wear a green or white T-shirt to school, but cannot choose between going to school or not going to school.
Encourage and develop the child’s talents
By developing what your child has a predisposition to and what they like to do, you will stimulate their self-confidence. If the child likes to sing and you enroll him in vocal courses, then over time the skill will grow and the child will be convinced of his abilities, that he can do something good.
Give your child responsibility – increase self-confidence
Simple tasks and praise for their implementation motivate and teach you to be responsible. “Assign” certain duties to the child according to age and praise for their fulfillment. At first, you may have to remind, but when performing your tasks, the child becomes more confident in himself, because he sees their result and understands that he is trusted because he is instructed to do something. These can be very simple tasks: feed the dog daily, water the flowers, etc.
Set realistic goals
The worst thing that can be done to shake children’s self-confidence is to set a task that the child will not be able to perform. Set realistic goals for your child, according to his age. If you want the child to learn how to dance folk dances – this is quite real, but in a month it is not possible to implement it. It is better to break big goals into smaller tasks so that the child has more self-confidence after each completed one.
Always praise the child if he deserves it
Do not forget about the praise of the child, although there is no need to praise for every little thing either. Parents almost always make comments if the child has made a more or less significant mistake, but they do not pay attention to very small mistakes. This should work with the celebration of the success of the child.
Allow your child to accept and experience their own defeats
Failures and defeats are an integral part of life and the child in any case will sometimes experience them, no matter how hard you try to protect him. Explain to your child that failures are normal, that they are a lesson for the future. Thus, the child will learn not only to calmly perceive defeats, but also to be emotionally flexible.
Become a role model
If you constantly doubt yourself, do not confidently make decisions about your own life and talk about your doubts – be prepared that the child will adopt this behavior. Your example of healthy self-confidence is the best motivator for a child.
