Home
>
Parenting
>
Parenting Skills - Five Ways To Turbo-Boost Your Confidence

Parenting Skills - Five Ways To Turbo-Boost Your Confidence

The 'phone conversation had nothing at all to do with parenting - but it made me think . . .

"Hello, Eastbank Football Club. Can I help you?" "Good morning, may I speak with the Assistant Coach, please?" "Oh, I'm sorry. He's still on vacation." "I see. Is anyone on the coaching staff there?" "No, they're all away right now. The club's closed for another week yet. I'm only the Groundsman." "Well, thanks anyway. And hey, why say you're only the Groundsman? If it wasn't for you, there wouldn't be a football club. They'd have nowhere to play!" (Pause) "Yeah, I'd never really thought of it like that. (Laughter) Thanks a lot, pal, you've made my day!"

So often we do ourselves down, don't we? We devalue our own contribution or service. "I'm only a shop assistant!" "I'm only a . . . " (fill in the blank!) Sometimes we even hear women say: "I'm just a housewife"!

Confidence and self-esteem are often in short supply these days. And nowhere more so than in PARENTING!

Even those who are superbly confident in their work or social situations, often teeter on the edge when it comes to their parenting skills.

Why?

Is it something to do with the breakdown in old-fashioned values and concepts of authority; the widening gulf between kids and their parents; the dangers we as parents are so acutely aware of, but which are casually dismissed by our kids?

Whatever the causes, there's a lot you can do to improve things.

Step 1 Dr Norman Vincent Peale, author of The Power Of Positive Thinking, used to advise people to sit down and write out a list of all their assets and abilities.

But Dr Peale's next suggestion is crucial. Once the list of assets and abilities has been written, he tells us to raise the stakes. Simply BELIEVE that you are at the very least 10% better than you think. It's now widely acknowledged in modern psychology that you'll still be way off the mark! So have faith. You're better than you think.

Step 2 Do some study. You probably weren't taught parenting skills at school or college, yet parenting is the most vital contribution to society. There are lots of books, courses, tapes, CDs and videos on parenting. No excuses! Grab some and get busy. Knowledge and insight bring confidence. Whatever stage you're at, you can improve yourself.

Step 3 Learn to temper your reaction in stressful parenting situations. Easier said than done! But you can make a conscious effort to stay calm and remind yourself of Dr Peale's advice (You're more capable than you think you are!), and you can put into practice what you've been studying about family dynamics.

Step 4 Develop yourself in some way. Yes, remember those piano lessons you once took, or that art class you attended? Interests like these are great stress relievers and they build self-confidence - which is vital for parenting. If you feel you're already confident in other matters, but it's only in parenting you feel a lack, why not take up some activity with your kids? Learning together brings you together, and can be great fun!

Step 5 Finally, resist any temptation to go it alone. Nature intended us to be social creatures. Seek advice from grandparents, relatives, friends. Overcome your pride. Discuss your parenting challenges with others and draw on the communal strength. And d'you know what? You'll find you're not alone. Let's work on parenting together, as a community.

Confident parents raise confident kids.

Take action now. If you do nothing, you can look forward to more of the same: worry, tension, ill-feeling etc etc.

Zap these negative trends once and for all. To give yourself a real boost, check out my website. There you'll find lots more to help you and your kids live life to the full.

Why do some parents and children succeed, while others fail?
Frank McGinty is an internationally published author and teacher. His writing includes motivational books for both parents and teenagers. If you want to develop your parenting skills and encourage your kids to be all they can be, visit his web pages,
http://www.frank-mcginty.com/peace-formula.html AND http://www.frank-mcginty.com/peace-formula.html

house refresh service Morton Grove ..

In The News:

Carnegie Mellon's noninvasive brain technology allows users to move robotic fingers by thinking about the motion, offering new possibilities for people with motor impairments.

Multi-factor authentication (MFA) adds an extra layer of protection to your accounts. Instead of relying only on a password, MFA requires you to verify your identity using two or more methods.

Scientists from Duke, Harvard, and the University of Otago have unveiled a game-changing tool called DunedinPACNI. It uses a single AI brain scan to reveal how fast a person is biologically aging.

A disturbing wave of fake agent phone scams is sweeping across the United States, catching people off guard and draining their savings.

Emojis aren't just playful add-ons; they're powerful tools for building stronger connections in our increasingly digital world.

Google has taken a major step toward the future of clean energy by partnering with Commonwealth Fusion Systems (CFS), an MIT spin-out working to build one of the world’s first commercial fusion reactors.

If you create and share art online, you might have seen messages warning that Facebook's parent company, Meta, claims the right to use or even sell anything you post, whether it's pictures, poems, or artwork.

Cybercriminals hit Qantas in a major data breach that exposed information from up to six million customers.

Having reliable, loud, and timely emergency alerts on your phone or device is important because when severe weather strikes, every second counts.

Here's how your daily brew is becoming the foundation for greener buildings.

Artificial intelligence (AI) and large language models (LLMs), such as ChatGPT, are transforming how we learn. But what does this mean for AI and learning retention?

Modern AI data centers use much more electricity than traditional cloud servers. In many cases, the existing power grid cannot keep up. One innovative solution is gaining traction: repurposed EV batteries for AI data centers.

Microsoft 365 and Outlook users are being targeted by a tactic that injects fake billing alerts directly into their calendars.

Researchers are now showing us that old smartphones as data centers could be the next big thing in sustainable tech.

Scientists have created micro-robots for sinus infection treatment that can enter the nasal cavity, eliminate bacteria directly at the source, and exit without harming surrounding tissue.

Let's examine how your data is collected in everyday life, who is buying and selling it, what happens to it afterward, and, most importantly, what you can do to protect yourself.

Researchers at the University of Sheffield in the U.K. developed small robots called "Pipebots" that can travel inside water pipes to find and potentially repair leaks, all without any excavation.

A groundbreaking new study has uncovered disturbing AI blackmail behavior that many people are unaware of yet.

Four teams of autonomous humanoid robots competed in China's first AI soccer tournament, demonstrating advanced capabilities in ball detection and independent decision-making.

The ID. Buzz autonomous van features self-driving technology with 13 cameras, nine LiDAR units and five radars after Volkswagen partnered with Hamburg and Uber for 2026 deployments.

Social Security phishing scams use urgency and impersonation to steal personal data. Learn how to spot fake SSA emails and implement 10 protective measures.

French startup Pazzi Robotics created an AI-powered pizza robot that made pies in under five minutes without human help, but it closed in 2022 despite patents and expert partnerships.

Reclaim your time from big tech with effective screen time reduction strategies for iPhone and Android, featuring steps to limit app usage and create phone-free zones.

Amazon Prime Day shoppers face threats from 120,000-plus scam websites as cybercriminals prepare phishing traps and malware ahead of the July sales event.

Fox News' AI Newsletter brings you the latest on this rapidly evolving technology.