Zig Ziglar
Parenting can be a delight if you approach it with an open heart and mind. The following points may seem like basic common sense to you, but many people are so rushed by the pressures of making a living that they don't give much thought to these issues. They wrongly assume that rearing children just happens-they are born, they go to school, they leave home. If only life were so simple! I If you do these things, you'll realize what a joy parenting can be:
- The most important step in successful parenting is to love your children unconditionally. You do not love your children because they are handsome or beautiful, are pleasant and courteous, make As, pick up after themselves, or for anything else that they do. If you put a condition on your love for them, they will always wonder if they have earned or deserve your love. This wonder breeds insecurity within children, and it ensures difficult times ahead.
Show unconditional love.
- A role model, in simple terms, is an individual whose behavior in a particular role is imitated by others. It is a parent's responsibility, like it or not, to demonstrate such noble qualities as courage, compassion, and genuine concern for others.
Accept that you are a role model.
- They are part of your schedule and can bring infinite joy or considerable misery. Much of that is determined by the time and effort that you put into raising your kids. An hour at the end of a hectic day is not quite enough to get the job done, especially if both parents have been working outside the home. Your children need your time and attention.
Remember that your kids are not a responsibility that you handle at your convenience.
- Two-parent families are the ideal arrangement for raising successful kids. It's more than just a cliché to say that the most important thing a father can do for his children is to love their mother, and the most important thing a mother can do for her children is to love their father.
If possible, stay together to raise your kids.
I believe if all parents take this approach, we will raise positive, successful children!
Adapted from Zig's book Success For Dummies.
