Parents have a huge impact on their child in profound ways. It is believed that early childhood is the best time for your child to develop “social skills” and “emotional intelligence”. The most influential learning takes place during this stage, which they can remember throughout their life effectively. It’s parents who are responsible for making their child an “all-rounder”.
As adults, many of us are often overwhelmed by worry, which means we don’t have the mental strength and ability to cope up with hard times. Fine parenting lies in comprehending the emotional source of problematic behavior in children. When a child’s emotion rushes high with unbearable feelings or meltdowns in trivial situations or “crying over little things”, this is where your child ’s “emotional intelligence” needs to be worked upon.
To de-clutter such disruptions, which can possibly occur in the future, let us look at some recommendations below to coach your child to develop “emotional intelligence”.
No sympathy, only empathy
Teach your child the importance of empathy and not sympathy. When you sympathize with someone, it makes the person weak rather than strong. But when you empathize with someone, you are still offering support, but are no longer adding your own miseries. In fact, by just being there and understanding without saying a word, means a lot.
Ask what and not why
Whenever an unwanted situation happens, a parent is more like to question the child on why they did it. Or, why does it always happen to them? The child goes on a defensive mode and looks at justifying his actions. What if we asked our child “what” questions? What happened here? What worked or did not work? The child will go into finding answers and deepening his understanding of the event and outcome.
Give space to your child
When the child falls down or is emotionally hurt, give the child the space he/she requires. Don’t panic and do not get disturbed. Your emotional imbalance will have a negative effect on the child and end up not receiving the space he requires to recoup and come out. Your child needs your support. So take your time, recharge yourself, take control of the situation and conduct yourself as an emotionally strong person.
Encourage playing with elders
Be it in the society or social circle, always encourage your child to play with children of mixed age. This gives the child exposure to real-life scenarios like handling your boss and team members. When a child learns to play with elder kids, he understands the importance of leadership and when he plays with younger kids and leads them, he understands the importance of teamwork and delegation.
Never take charge, unless asked
Your child needs to explore and learn. Allow him to take charge of his life. Don’t try to be a nice parent by taking charge of the situation. You may end up harming the learning in the process. Take charge of the situation only if asked or requested by the child or else play along with the game.
Unconditional love and respect’
This is a no-brainer, yet needs to be reiterated. Be a pillar of unconditional support, love, and respect for the child. Let us make our children, the future citizens of our country, self-sufficient and emotionally strong.
