How do you like to see your kids – A) happy and cheery or B) sad and lost? No, you need not answer that. We know there wouldn’t be any parent on earth who would choose option B for their children. All of us want our children to remain happy always. But do you know what is the reason behind those bright smiles and giggles? It is the feeling that they are loved and accepted. This feeling makes them feel proud of themselves, makes them feel confident of themselves, believe in themselves, and think good about themselves. And if all this has to be described in one word, it’s nothing else but ‘self-worth’ or ‘self-esteem.’
Understanding the Meaning of Self-Worth?
Self-worth is basically a feeling that makes a child feel good about himself/herself. It gives him/her the confidence to try out new things and cope with the challenges that pose up along the path. We, at Dayawati Modi Academy, one of the Top CBSE Schools in Meerut, have seen that children with self-worth know that failure at first try doesn’t mean they would fail in further attempts as well. This is the reason why children with high self-worth are not only happy but also perform well in academics and other spheres of life.
On the other hand, children with low self-worth generally fear putting their hands in anything new. They aren’t confident of their own decisions and doubt their abilities. They prefer staying alone as they feel people won’t accept them. No wonder, these kids remain sad, are critical of their own selves, and fail to identify their true potential.
How to build up your child’s self-esteem?
There are certain things that you should never leave to chance. Your child’s self-worth is definitely one of those! In fact, if there’s anyone who plays the most important role in building self-worth in kids, it is definitely you, the parents! You might not know, but those smiles, that pat on the back, that proud look, etc., that you generally give to your kid as a way of showing your love and appreciation towards them, actually go on to build their self-esteem.
So today, we, at Dayawati Modi Academy, have brought forth for you a few ways you can try out to help raise the self-worth of your children:
- Praise their efforts
Praising your kids is a good way to let them know that you feel proud of them. But make sure that you praise the efforts and not the final outcome. While this way of praising gives the kids the message that you love them and are proud of them, it also drives them to put in their best efforts in whatever they do. Instead of focusing on results, they would begin focussing more on the efforts, and that would surely help them register bigger feats in life.
- Encourage them to try out new things
There’s no denying that if there’s anyone in the world that kids trust the most, it is their parents. As such, if they hear more of “Stop!”, “Don’t do that!”, “That’s not meant for you!”, “You’ll ruin that!” or “You are too young to do that!” kind of expressions from you, they are naturally going to believe that they aren’t good enough to try their hands at anything new. But if you encourage them to try out new things and also show them the right way to proceed with the task, it will help raise the self-worth of your kids. Their confidence will get a significant boost, and this will also instill in them the belief that they are capable of doing new things.
Say NO to harsh criticism
Make sure that no matter how angry you are with your child, you don’t end up saying negative things to the kid. You might not even realize how badly your negative messages actually harm the self-worth of your child. Hence, try and hold your calm and deal patiently with the kid. If required, walk out for a while from the scenario and return back when you are cooled down.
At Dayawati Modi Academy, ranked among the Top CBSE Schools in Meerut, we firmly believe that building self-worth in children is all the more essential in today’s world of fierce competition, where kids need not just academic excellence but also the confidence to deal with everyday challenges. This confidence comes to them only when they have their self-worth intact. And as Coco Chanel has said, “Beauty begins the moment you decide to be yourself,” when kids are confident of their worth, they learn to be true to themselves, and that lays the path to a happy life ahead.