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Taking the struggle out of parenting
If parenting feels like a struggle and joy a distant memory, I’ve been there too.
Here’s something to play with…
A powerful way to create a feeling of connection with children and young people (including teenagers) is by really listening to them.
As the feeling of connection increases, the feeling of struggle decreases.
If you want to give this a go, you could start by asking yourself these questions…
When my child is talking to me, what am I listening to?
A lot of the time as parents, we are focussed on our own thoughts about what our child is saying, so not really available to just listen to them.
Having this question in mind can open up the possibility of listening purely to understand our child’s world (which is probably very different to ours), even if it’s just for five minutes. This can make a massive difference.
What do I want to create in this relationship?
When a child is struggling or experiencing big emotions, it can feel uncomfortable to listen to them.
Asking this question can help take our focus off how we’re feeling and onto the relationship we want to create. It opens up the possibility to feel uncomfortable and listen anyway.
These questions are just as relevant in the classroom or at a team meeting. They are taken from my PDF guide “Taking the struggle out of parenting”. If you’d like your own copy of it, you can get it free here.
