We all have some memory of our childhood in which someone older told us that in this life we were going to have to make a lot of effort to achieve everything we wanted. In the world our parents and grandparents lived in, people had to work very hard to support their families. But nowadays, the sacrifice is almost non-existent and the false idea that our goals can be achieved without effort has been established.
We have become accustomed to thinking that we can get what we want with a single click. Want it and have it. Everything seems easy, affordable, immediate, everything can be easily bought or obtained. Rewards are quick and easy to earn. We want something and we look for the fast, nice and cheap way to get it. This makes everything lose value, so it is important to teach children that they have to work hard to get what they want. Only then will they value and appreciate things in their proper measure.
Goodbye to effort?
We have been led to believe that we can learn languages, become physically fit, or become very popular with very little work and sacrifice. Social networks They bring us closer to a false success, the one that is confused with having many likes or followers. They sell us that we can be happy relying solely on luck or the work of others. Many parents suffer when their children work hard and do not achieve their goals.. They tend to pave the way for them, to solve their problems, to overprotect them so they don't get frustrated or make mistakes.
Parents tend to spare them momentary suffering and quickly satisfy their needs or whims so they don't get angry or sad. But it is precisely this effort that is important to educate because without it they will not be able to be truly happy. It is necessary to explain to children that effort is the means by which they will achieve many of their goals throughout their lives.
Raising a child in the culture of effort
It is essential that children learn from an early age to manage frustration. Defeats, setbacks, mistakes are part of life and many times we have to start from scratch and try again. That is why you have to explain to them that they will not always get what they set out to do, and that the important thing is not to give up in the face of the difficulties that will be found along the way, because those setbacks will teach them to be patient and find solutions to overcome any obstacle.
Effort, perseverance and willpower must become the pillars of the emotional education of all children. The culture of effort educates us in the determination of our will and perseverance. The effort strengthens our tenacity, teaches us to be resilient, to assume responsibilities and face adversity with optimism and realism. Educating in the culture of effort is promoting "being" instead of "having". Effort teaches us to evolve as people and to mature. And, without a doubt, there is nothing more comforting in this life than feeling the satisfaction of having achieved our goals thanks to tenacity and perseverance.
Keys to educating a child in the culture of effort
- Give your child small daily challenges to make an effort. This way you help him to identify his illusions and goals, to seek motivation by mastering impatience and impulsiveness. You will understand that each difficulty strengthens and that each achievement magnifies your soul.
- Make him aware daily that your love and trust are unconditional. You will achieve this by offering him your patience and affection, appreciating everything he achieves, empowering him with words of encouragement and giving him the time he needs to learn. With this, you will learn to better choose the people you have by your side, since you will choose people who make you better, who row in your same direction and who encourage you to move forward.
- Explain to him that perseverance is the virtue by which the other virtues bear fruit.. Daily practice becomes the best of teachers. Educating in respect, gratitude and honesty, they will achieve that the perseverance be your best weapon.
- Educate him from your example. Give him your energy, optimism and your daily will to achieve what you want. You will achieve this by being persistent in the face of challenges and eliminating complaints from your vocabulary.
- Teach him that difficulties and failures become great opportunities to learn. You have to learn to commit to your dreams especially when the going gets tough. The easy but frustrating way is to throw in the towel.
- Help him manage his emotions correctly, to master indecision and patience, to master the ups and downs of your mood and sadness when things go wrong. This will be achieved depending on work and commitment, and not on good luck.
- Enhances their autonomy, their self-knowledge and decision-making. Teach him to look at himself with respect and realism, to not have the need to be perfect or depend on the evaluations of others. Knowing each other will set appropriate expectations and reinforce the process without being blinded only in the results.