Open & Honest Communication
Raising children requires open and honest communication. The only way children will ever participate in an open and honest dialogue is if they feel safe to speak openly and honestly. If you as a parent create any sensation of fear, even the slightest amount, if you are angry, harsh, critical, or punitive, you are creating a sizable obstacle to effective communication with your children. All problem solving and all skill development requires safety and trust. Children may forgive our transgressions, but they will not necessarily forget. Now, with that said, I have never met a parent who did not lose their sense of calm at least every now and then. So, what do we as parents do when we make parenting mistakes? The first step is always to take a step back, take some time to consider what went wrong and to regain a sense of calm. It may take a while to figure out what went wrong, but once we do regain our composure we will want to go back to our children and apol...
