Decisiveness - How to help your child develop decisiveness

Developing decisiveness in children is a journey that unfolds over time, much like the cultivation of other positive character traits.

While gradual, this process promises to profoundly and meaningfully shape your child’s future.

By providing your child choices and opportunities to make decisions during their formative years, you foster their leadership qualities and empower them to take charge of their own age-appropriate lives.

This approach to parenting instils a sense of confidence and self-assurance in both you and your child.

It may seem insignificant, but even the smallest choices make a massive impact.

For example, asking your child if they prefer to have a bath before or after dinner or which book they’d like you to read at bedtime, can significantly impact their development.

Over time, people who make decisions grow in self-confidence.

Children become more independent as they make choices concerning their lives. This is because it provides a sense of control, which results in a sense of responsibility.

Choices are made, which result in consequences.

Depending on the consequences, children will discover whether they like or dislike their original choice. Next time they will either make the same or a different one.

By all means, help your child by asking if you may share your thoughts with them.

If they give the OK, then let them know of potential consequences you see that they might not.

Regardless of whether you agree with their decisions, let them proceed and learn unless someone could get hurt badly.

There is no need to wrap your child in cotton wool.

Talk about potential consequences and let them make informed decisions.

Talk about consequences with your child.

A current issue is social media, how it impacts them, and how they feel about going on social media.

Recently, I listened to ‘Green Lights’ by Matthew McConaughey.

I discovered that Matthew and his wife Camila allowed their eldest child, a son, to have a social media account on his 16th birthday—no earlier.

How many parents do that these days, I wondered… and what impact is it having on them? Are the children realising there’s more to life than being online so much?

The  ‘…but everyone else is allowed’ story would be raised time and again I suspect – but what if the child made the decision to cut down, or eliminate themselves online – would that be an experiment they learn from?

Children feel secure when they have boundaries. Help them assess their emotions and how it relates to being online.

By making decisions for themselves, your child will discover what they value, how they choose to behave and what behaviour is, and is not, acceptable in others.

They’ll discover all the positive virtues within themselves, feel confident within, grow up to like themselves and make decisions based on their values because of the confidence they feel within.