Focus on the Whole Child
Excerpted from Ken's Parenting Guide Problems and Concerns v. Health, Well-being, Interests, Activities, Hobbies, Skills, Attributes, and Characteristics. There is a common tendency to focus on the negative. Problems just seem to call to us, to demand our attention. Our parental anxieties fuel our focus on problems and concerns. We imagine future disasters. A sense of urgency grows -- must fix the problem now, this minute! Pause for a moment. Breathe. Imagine a warm, sunny beach ... waves gently washing against the sand, a gentle breeze, .... Take a step back. Ask two key questions: 1) is anyone or anything on fire right now, 2) is blood gushing from a wound? If you answer yes to either of these questions, stay calm and take immediate action. If the answer to both is no, stay calm take no immediate action. We have time to think about the situation, formulate a coherent plan, and implement corrective actions steps. ...