Trusting the Child Leads to Inner Success

Trusting the child leads to inner success for the Child and for the Guide doing the trusting.

Have you ever heard of people saying you shouldn't praise your children? Well if you can find it in yourself to unschool the social norms of parenting, then my guess is you'll be able to trust your child. When you really trust your child they get their own praise from the inside. Can you think of a better gift?

This weekend, we had breakfast at a cafe. My 22 month old requested water from the same glasses my husband and I were drinking from. Of course, naturally, she wanted her own.

I gritted my teeth and thought to myself “here we go.” Will all of that practicing, "holding glass with two hands," that we do at home pay off or are we going to have a mess to clean up and I'm totally going to be judged for being "that Mom."

Not only did she have to get outside (because we were sitting on the patio) but she had to walk about 30 yards because we were at the end of the patio.

I courageously filled the glass 1/4 of the way full, reminded her to use two hands, and off she went.

Obstacle 1 - getting out the door.
Obstacle 2- walking the distance to the table

The end result, success ❤

Not only did she make it but she didn't even spill a drop. She is capable beyond words and that's the message I indicated to her. I had to tell the server on her tail, trying to coax the water out of her hands, that, "she's ok, we practice at home, she can do it."

We do practice a lot at home! Trust doesn't come without knowing I've given her the steps she needs to succeed. We have broken plenty of glass but we've successfully carried glass more than we've broken it and I felt like she was ready to be trusted.

What obstacles might you need to overcome in yourself to be able to trust your child? Sometimes we have to bend the cultural norm of “taking care of our children,” in order to trust that they can do it. Taking a small step like showing your child how to wipe their own face, by modeling looking in the mirror and showing them how you wipe your face can help you get going in the right direction.

For more tips and information on how to foster your child's independence, join our free Facebook group, Follow the Child Tribe.