Originally Posted on February 3, 2012

Developing your Child’s Self-Esteem

Part 1 of 3 part Blog Series

How can parents help their children and teens develop a positive Self-image?

Let’s answer that question by asking ourselves, what value would positive Self-esteem add to our children’s character?

One thing is certain ~ Self-esteem is a major key to success in life. The development of a positive self-concept or healthy self-esteem is extremely important to the happiness and success of children and teenagers, and can strengthen their character tremendously.

In order to help our kids, we must have a basic understanding of how we can quickly and successfully contribute to the improvement our child’s self-esteem.

Self-esteem is effected by the way we feel about ourselves.  Our behavior clearly reflects our inner feelings and our inner feelings effect our self-image (self-esteem), it’s a circle, one we can control if we make an effort to stay in tune.

Below is a quick list of things to look for in your child to determine if they are showing signs related to a high self-esteem:

•     acts independently
•     assumes responsibility
•     takes pride in his or her accomplishments
•     tolerates frustration
•     freely attempts new tasks and challenges
•     handles positive and negative emotions well
•     freely offers to help others

Here is a quick list of things to look for in your child to determine if they show signs related to a low-self esteem:

•       avoids trying new things
•       seems to feel unloved and unwanted
•       quickly blames others for his or her own shortcomings
•       feels, or pretends to feel, emotionally indifferent
•       seems unable to tolerate a normal level of frustration
•       he or she speaks negatively about their own talents and abilities
•       her or she is easily influenced

Whether you notice any or all of the above traits in your child, you may find it encouraging to know that we as parents (more than anyone else) can make the necessary adjustments to help promote our kids’ self-esteem. This is big! You have the power to help your child overcome any negative traits and adapt more positive ones in order to yield a more positive self-image.

More often then not, we as parents do not realize that our words and actions have a large impact on the way our children or teenagers feel about themselves, be it positive or negative.

Next week I will provide additional guidance on helping to promote a positive self-image in your children, in Part 2 of our 3 Part Blog Series.

Until then, I would love to know your thoughts…or experiences regarding this topic.