This is a paid collaboration.
By instilling optimism in your child from a young age, you prepare them to defy their own barriers and pursue their wildest dreams. So how can you create that can-do attitude? We have partnered up with a private school in Rickmansworth to share tips on how you can raise your child to be optimistic.
Give Them Responsibility
We’re not talking about saving the planet here. Giving your child small responsibilities from an early age allows for them to develop a sense of worth and fulfilment. This could be a simple task like putting away toys. Over time you will want to increase the level of responsibility to push your child to become more and more optimistic. This sense of accomplishment will help to create a positive work ethic and confidence to try something new.
Teach Your Child to Be Hopeful
It’s inevitable for your child to find struggle in learning or doing something new. By framing your advice in a hopeful light, you can help to teach the valuable skill of perseverance.
To do this, reassure them by acknowledging their struggle without dwelling on it too much and focus on the outcome. For example, if your child is struggling to tell the time, tell them that it’s hard to tell the time at first but they will get it.
Be Honest
Children are smart and can see through a pep talk. Avoid selling a false narrative or filling your child with false hope as it can create more harm than good. Instead, be realistic as optimism grows from real past experiences.
Reasonable Risks
Evaluation and avoidance of risk are essential to preventing harm but doing so entirely can lead to pessimism. Allow your child to take reasonable risks to build risk-taking behaviour and optimism.