Why Should Children Be Mentally Strong
Any adult reading this will know the difficulties life throws your way. Imagine if you were mentally prepared to deal with any negative, solve any problem and understand self-care practices that could benefit your life. You would rip my handoff in a heartbeat. Instead of struggling in your 20s. Training and teaching children to be mentally strong will build the very foundations that build mental strength and mental wellbeing.
Why Should It Matter To You As A Parent
Every parent’s dream is to have their child go into the big wild world fully prepared to deal with any challenges that come their way. This won’t happen magically. This will happen from the parent’s guidance and understanding of what makes a child mentally prepared. Your role as a parent is of course to prepare your children for adult life. By taking it seriously you will see your child become mentally happier and resilient into adulthood. No one’s upbringing is perfect but with the knowledge, we have at our fingertips. There is no excuse anymore.
The Long Term Benefits Of Focussing On Teaching Children Mindset Habits
Becoming mentally strong starts with forging the right habits. Which will be discussed below. The long term benefits of this will huge. Mental health, relationships, finances, career, purpose, life satisfaction. The list could go on. There is no debate here as this would benefit anyone. A child mind is perfect for being nurtred and forming these correct neural pathways that create mentally strong mindset habits. Just like producing sports athletes or musicians. The elite always crafts their habits and skills in childhood. As this is the easiest way to learn and teach someone.
Below are 12 mindset habits that I believe through experience and research will benefit any child to become mentally strong.
12 Mindset Habits Children Need To Become Mentally Strong
1. Let Them Make Mistakes
When a child is condemned for every mistake they make it will lead to long term mental health issues when they become an adult. It will cause them to be fearful to take risks to believe in themselves and become doubtful. No one wants to live this way as it will lead to a lack of confidence. As a parent to build mental strength we have to let our children be free to make mistakes without ridicule. We mustn’t get angry at them (which can be challenging) but we must learn to re-direct them in a better way. Being their personal guide through childhood and into adulthood. The child will be free to take risks and be less fearful of taking action. By learning this they will grow into a mentally strong adult.
2. Learn Positive Thinking
Teaching a child to always think and look for the positives when their upset and frustrated can be seriously challenging. The easy way to react is always in a negative way but teaching your child to look for the positive can have a dramatic change in the outlook they have on life. They will see through the mist that there is a better way and this negative situation they’re in will not last. Not only will it be healthy for the mind it will create opportunities for them. As what you focus on will come your way eventually. By focusing this way you teach them to find positives in any situation.
3. Self Care Of The Mind
Teaching a child a self-care routine will create a long term habit they benefit from more and more as they attain adulthood. As responsibilities come their way the stress of this can mount up if you don’t take notice of it. Preparing your child for these problems will go a long way to protecting them. Some simple self-care routines to do are meditation, gratitude, positive affirmation about themself and journaling about their day. The list could go on but picking something they enjoy or making it an enjoyable process is crucial for them wanting to make this a habit. Make this a family routine and show your child the benefits of taking care of your mind can do. This will build mental strength from their failures, emotions and any challenges they face.
4. Find Ways To Win At Everything They Do
We live in a world now where the hint of completion is frowned upon. This is a world that doesn’t exist and will make any child worse off for it. Preparing your child to find a way to win at everything they do will teach them to find solutions and positives in everything they do. So if they go into a competitive race they want to find a way to win the race, if they studying for their exams they will look to find a way to get the highest marks they can achieve.
This will be done based on their own ability and potential in comparison to what others are doing but acknowledging their choice to become the best they can be. When a child mind finds a way to win. They will find a way. As a parent, you will have to teach ethicalness as well about doing it in an honest way which should naturally reflect your own values. With others, mental strength skills like dealing with failure and being allowed to make mistakes will contribute to an effective mindset to always find ways to win in life.
5. Deal With Failure Positively
Teaching your child to deal with failure is of major importance. When you treat failure as the end of the world or live in that pain for too long it can majorly affect your mental health. When a child knows that failures are just lessons of how to make improvements. It will put them into a mental state to not give up but to make corrections. All successful people from inventors to sports athletes know that failures are part of the journey.
A great way to get your child into the habit of dealing with failure positively is at the end of each day you ask them what have they failed at today. This shows to them that it’s normal and by discussing it you can both come up with solutions to fix it.
6. Push Them To Face Their Fears
Just like adults, children have fears. It could be a fear to speak to strangers or it could be a fear of going to a new sports club. Whatever the fear is as a parent you have to help them face their fears that you know they are more than capable of achieving. Then when they have done it and they feel excited and see that it wasn’t scary. You teach this lesson. Over time they will do it on their own. Taking this into adulthood they won’t be scared of taking risks because of a feeling of fear, they will know that this feeling needs to be acted upon. This build mental strength.
7. Build Responsibility For What They Can Control
It’s important to teach children what they can and can’t control. Helping them to understand they can’t control the weather, peoples actions, reactions, thoughts, feelings, beliefs. But instead focus what they can control is their attitude, work ethic and actions. This will teach them to focus on internal factors that they have full control over rather than giving too much time over external factors they cannot control. This gives great power to an individual and builds their mental strength.
8. Build The Balanced Mind
When you are a child all of your emotions are new and much like superman finding his powers for the first time. They can definitely get out of control sometimes. One minute they can be on top of the world then soon after they can feel like the world is on their shoulders. Teaching children to remain level headed when things are going well and remaining level headed when things are going wrong. Will help them develop that life is changeable and nothing is ever fixed. Will help them keep themselves on the ground. Because when we are arrogant, mistakes start to creep in and when we are depressive nothing ever gets done. Teach them repeatedly to be balanced (easier said than done) and you will see them mature to have a level head. This is mental strength.
9. Teach Them To Build Systems
Research has shown the very best business and leaders work off systems. These systems are straightforward practices that help make businesses or coaching seem seamless. If the system is so good it can be easily picked up by another person to succeed in its success.
Whether you like it or not. The Mcdonald franchise is the best example I can think of, of creating a system that you understand clearly and can replicate. When you teach your child systems, they can use them throughout their life but also easily pass them down to their children. Leaving a legacy of mentally strong and healthy family members in my opinion that’s priceless.
10. Create A Want List Not A Can’t List
Children are the asking champions for things they want. You will never enter a shop where they don’t want at least something. This is normal but always telling a child they can’t have something can develop the mind into a mindset that can’t get rather that will get. To combat this teaching children to have a want list. So things they want can be written down so they can get them in time when it’s ready. This allows them to become mentally strong to know they can have anything they want they just have to work towards it. Rather than they can never have it.
11. Allow Them To Speak Their Mind
When children get older they will challenge your thoughts at every turn with why why why!! This can be a strange feeling for a parent to have everything questioned but this is a great thing. The child is starting to understand the world and you as a parent have to be open-minded for discussion. Especially in the teenage years. Of course, adults are teachers for children but children can definitely teach adults a thing or two. Allowing a child to speak their mind creates a safe space for them to express themselves and develop thoughts and ideas that develop creativity. This will build their mental strength to free-thinking not submissive. The latter will result in resentment and they will not come to you when they face problems.
12. Stillness Is A Strength
With any child keeping them in one place can be difficult. Of course, this is natural and great for every child to do. But practising stillness can foster discipline and a focus on their present self. The best way to do this is with meditation for about 5 to 10 minutes or through Yoga where they have to focus on the breath in positions. This creates a good habit for kids so they are present and in control of their thoughts. Studies have shown being in stillness reduces responses in the parasympathetic system, which is responsible for fight or flight and increases responses in the sympathetic system, responsible for rest and relaxation. In other words, it calms your mind allowing you to feel more at peace and less stressed out and helping the child become mentally strong.
How To Apply This With Your Own Children
- Make a weekly strategy of what your going to do to help them build mental strength.
- Don’t expect quick results, this will be years of prcatice.
- Expect your child to resist and that’s ok
- Make it enjoyable for everyone
- Show them don’t tell them ( Be the role model)
- 1% improvement is better than no improvement
PLEASE COMMENT AND SHARE YOUR STORIES
A Final Word From The Future Mindset
I hope you enjoyed today’s article 12 Mindset Habits Children Need To Become Mentally Strong. I hope the article has helped in some way. If you need extra help or any questions answered. Don’t hesitate to contact me at adam@thefuturemindset.com
We are on social media platforms below but we are really excited to announce our weekly newsletter about everything mindset. Sign up below and enjoy the process of building your mental strength.
Follow Us On Instagram & Twitter
@thefuturemindset/@futuremindset_
