Parents' Corner

Helping Your Child Succeed in Life, pt. 1

Posted by David Smith on Mon, May 13, 2013 @ 08:12 AM
Success

Forbes.com focuses on finance but they also know that in order to handle money well, a child needs to also be able to handle life, so in "Want Your Child to Succeed? Don't Do These Four Things" Forbes.com outlines ways parents can raise children who are equipped to handle life's challenges. These may be tough habits to break but they suggest you try NOT to:

Compliment Your Child for Being Smart

Children who hear that they are smart are "less inclined to work hard." This seems like odd advice because doesn’t it feel good to know that you are smart? It does, but it may not motivate a child. A child who hears that he or she is smart may assume that all of their work will reflect that, not realizing that some things require more effort than others. We discussed this in our post on the "The Best Way to Affirm Your Toddler" and Forbes.com notes that this same principle applied to older children as well. Children are much more motivated when they are told that they have worked hard and put in a lot of effort. This spurs them on to "improve problem-solving skills."

Pay Your Child For Getting Good Grades

Parents and community-based programs have tried to use money as an incentive to get children to work harder in school but Forbes.com cites a Harvard study that found this is not effective. The kind of delayed gratification that adults can grasp (study now to earn good grades and money later) is harder for children to understand. And what happens when a parent or a community program is low on funds?

If you want to use money as a motivator, they suggest paying children for accomplishing certain tasks like finishing a book instead of paying for good grades.

Topics: Child Development, Skill Building, Child Benefits, Learning

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