What's your main purpose as a father?
Isn't it to prepare your kids to be happy, healthy, successful people in their own lives?
What's the best way to do this?
One effective method of preparing them for their own lives is to give them a heavy dose of the word that not enough kids are getting today. That word is the ėNî word, or the word no.
We all deal with a certain amount of frustration in our everyday adult lives. We are frustrated at our jobs, in our relationships, and by circumstances that we have no control over. Over time we learn to handle frustration better and to turn it into challenges and opportunities that we work through.
People who can handle frustration successfully tend to have happier and more successful lives. They learn to be resilient and to appreciate what they've accomplished and what they've received.
How about your kids?
Are your kids being frustrated enough? Are there high enough expectations being placed on them? Are you saying no enough and are you allowing them to have opportunities to be frustrated and to work through it?
There are a lot of kids today receiving boatloads of gifts and gadgets from their parents who aren't being given many responsibilities within their families.
If you're not allowing your kids to be exposed to responsibility and frustration, and if you're not liberally giving out the N word to them, you may be creating monsters within the confines of your home.
Many parents have gone through hard times in their lives and naturally want to spare their children the same fate that they experienced. They have a very difficult time seeing their children struggling and allowing them to deal with it.
The result of this choice is that many children today get almost everything they want in terms of clothes, electronic gadgets, toys etc. The amount of stuff they receive and the new products that they want keep growing every year.
Try comparing what your children get in terms of their most wanted items to what you get in your life. Is it a close comparison?
It's clear that many parents are preparing their kids for a life that's out of touch with the real world. The same kids who have so many material possessions often don't appreciate or take care of what they do have. Why should they? There will probably be more goodies coming soon.
Fathers who say no to their kids on a fairly regular basis take a big step towards ensuring that their kids are happy, responsible, and successful.
Here are some specific actions that dads can take:
ïIf you're married, consult with your wife about what your dose of the ėNî word will be. Creating a unified front will strengthen your position and cause fewer conflicts.
ïNever do things for your children that they can do for themselves. Allow
them to be frustrated and to learn to be more resilient.
ïConsider an allowance for your kids, even if they're quite young, so that they can develop a sense of responsibility with money and a sense of taking care of their things.
ïTake stock of your children's possessions. Do they have way too many things? Are their some things that might be better suited for Goodwill?
ïFoster an environment of appreciation for the things you have. Model this appreciation in how you care for the things you own and how you use them.
ïLimit the number and price of the gifts your kids receive at holidays and parties. Donate or give away the gifts that they aren't very interested in. Talk to your relatives and friends if necessary about what you're trying to do.
It's difficult at times to see your kids' struggle with the many challenges of being young and inexperienced. Frustration is a constant companion of kids as they learn the many skills and demands of living their lives.
Fathers can make an extremely important choice for themselves and their children when these frustrating moments arise. They can see the opportunity for their kids to learn from these moments by having to work through these feelings.
Fathers who are really interested in the success of their kids are motivated by doing what works for their kids in the long run.
Fathers who are interested in having their kids ėfeel goodî much of the time and who feel good themselves when they can ėrescueî their kids from frustrating feelings are more interested in being the savior.
The message here comes in loud and clear for your kids: Your dad doesn't think you can handle this.
Remember that some day your kids will figure these things out for themselves.
When they do, they'll thank you for allowing them to struggle.
About the Author
Mark Brandenburg MA, CPCC, is the author of ė25 Secrets of Emotionally Intelligent Fathersî (
http://www.markbrandenburg.com/e_book.htm#secrets. For more great tips and action steps for fathers, sign up for his FREE bi-weekly newsletter, ėDads, Don't Fix Your Kids,î at
http://www.markbrandenburg.com