Helping Your Children Toward Achievement

“Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful.” ~ Herman Cain

How did your parents encourage you to achieve success in your life? Are you using the same methods with your children? Do you know if they are the best methods?
Our children are each born with the potential to achieve, but if your dreams for his achievement push him too hard, or don’t push him at all, how can he reach his achievement knowing full well it was him that achieved it and not you pushing from behind?

There’s a meme on FaceBook that says “Show them where to look, but don’t tell them what to think about it.” I think this is a better idea than helping them reach their potential. How do you know what their potential is? You only
know yours. They need your help to discover their own.

We’re in a society where pushing hard toward success begins really early. “My baby can do xxx faster and earlier than others.” I don’t think this is wise. Allow them to unfold naturally in a rich environment, one with books, trips, shows, friends, all that demonstrate possibilities to your child. And consider not looking at grades. I suppose teachers want to have some objective way to let you know how your child is doing, but there is always some level of subjectivity in there. Don’t get caught up in the “my child must reach his potential” syndrome and his grades prove that. It may not be accurate.

Are they happy? Are they trying their level best? Do they have the right support in which to learn? Who can best help them answer homework questions if it isn’t you? They are not puppets who perform. They are human beings who unfold more, and more, and more, and because each of us has limitless potential, each of us always will. Aren’t you still learning and achieving?

Frankly, who is entitled to judge whether your child achieves his potential or not? Each of us has our own ideas about what achieving potential is, and this changes from individual to individual. It’s your child who has to feel that he or she is achieving.

Your child’s potential is a magnificent jewel with which he was born. It’s part of the Allness. Everything that he or she will become is already tucked in there, waiting for his desire to bring it forth into experience. You can encourage this. You can tell him he is a good learner. You can help him to see that his success is inside, just waiting for him to bring it forth.

Many children are afraid to try new things. They need your encouragement. You can nurture them to unfold the courage to be willing to step forward and try. You will be ultimately making the world a better place, one wee step forward at a time. Help them to recognize satisfaction early on when they do achieve one more step forward.
All children need encouragement to get past their struggles, whether they appear to be smart or not so smart. It’s more about patience, courage and feeling powerful enough to do it than it is about smarts. While so-called smart children are capable of learning subject material, the inner skills might not be at the same level of development.

Teach them to persevere. Teach them about do-overs. See if you can light them up from the inside about trying. Help them not to compare themselves with others. Help them to discover who they are and what they’re made of that embraces not only their skills but their humanness.
Parents hold a mirror up for their kids so the kid can learn who he or she is. What are you reflecting to your children? How do you nurture them to become well-rounded, happy and satisfied adults?