Posts Tagged "“say what you see”"
Taming Step-Parent Guilt
Question from a guilt-ridden step-parent: I am seeking advice for myself that will hopefully help me to connect with my step-daughter. Long story short...my stepdaughter came to live with us when she was 6 years old she is now 14. Her biological mother is not part of her life. I see her as one of my own daughters, we do not say step-mom or step-daughter, (I have two other daughters 12...
Read MoreSuccess Training, Not Micro-Managing
Our friend Rachel Macy Stafford's post, The Manager in My Home & the Five Words that Changed Everything, documents her shift from micro-managing to empowering her daughters. She requested my assistance when dozens of questions flooded in from parents all over the world about how to put perfectionism aside and provide guidance without micro-managing and criticizing. One of the points I made...
Read MoreI want it! You’re not my friend anymore!
Do these situations sound familiar? At an in-service training I did for preschool teachers, I was asked a few questions about children fighting. These could come up at home or at school, so I wanted to share them with you. Although these sample responses were designed for younger children, they actually apply to older children as well. That's no surprise when you remember that the Language of...
Read MoreWhy I Let Kids Cry
When you hear a child crying, what is your first reaction? If it's a child you know, you might have an impulse to rush to their aid and fix the problem for them ASAP. If you can't do that, you may feel the need to do something to at least distract them or cheer them up. If you follow our blog or have taken our classes, you have probably heard about our technique for facilitating tantrums. In a...
Read MoreWhining: Can You Be Helpless?
It's easy to smile and say, "Sure!" when a child asks you for help pleasantly. But what about when the child whines and says "I can't"? If that puts you on edge, this article is for you. What stops us from helping children who are acting helpless is the belief that by providing help we will be affirming that they need it. But if we withhold assistance and try to push them into...
Read More