The Lasting Impression of Words
Have you ever heard that the way you speak to your child becomes their inner voice? Well, this is something I absolutely believe in. I think we, as parents, need to remember this phrase daily and put it into practice in the way we talk to our children.
Take for example, a child who is constantly being thrown negative words and phrases everyday from his or her parents. This child then goes to school where he or she is also being bullied by other children. Can you imagine the emotional trauma this child has to endure? Think of the effects this will have on the child as he or she grows into an adult.
As a parent, I feel it is, and will always be my duty to create a safe haven for my child at home. No matter what age she is, I always want her to know that she is an awesome person and I am her biggest fan. In proving this to our children, we must first start with the way we speak to them.
Teaching Positivity
The easiest way to practice this is through positive affirmations. What are positive affirmations? They are a way of verbally empowering someone through positive thinking. This is extremely necessary for children because it helps build self-esteem.
I don’t know about you, but I’d rather my daughter know that she is awesome and have it coming from me than to have her seek it from others once she gets older. Plus, practicing positive affirmations with them will more likely result in them practicing it once they’re on their own.
Building self-esteem at a young age is so important especially in today’s world where people can say mean and hurtful things without ever even physically seeing you. Being a millennial, I was able to see first-hand the evolution of cyber-bullying and it just makes me even more proactive in making sure my child has a strong sense of self and love for herself.
Empowering and Uplifting
I’ve read many articles about why you should not compliment on your child’s appearance (as in telling your daughter she is beautiful) and I get it but I can’t say I agree with it. I tell my daughter everyday how beautiful she is, but I also tell her how smart and kind she is too. I grew up with my mother who did (and still does) the same thing to me and my siblings and I’ve never felt as though my beauty was the only thing I had going for myself.
As long as we are not only focusing on outer appearance, there is nothing wrong with complimenting our sons and daughters. Positive affirmations can take the form of many different attributes. For this specific post though, I will not be focusing on physical appearance because I do believe it is so much more meaningful to teach your child how to love what is deep within.
If you’re like me and your child is too young to speak these, be sure to pick a few and repeat them to your child anyways. They will understand you are saying a praise and before you know it they will be saying them too.
21 Comments
I really love this! I am always trying to use more positive affirmations so I was really glad to find this. Thank you for posting.
I’m glad you found it useful!
I totally agree with this and need to practice this with my 4&2 year old…
thankyou for sharing this. Definitely something to print out and use for the kiddos. Mine are 4 & 2 right now.
It’s never too soon to start building up self-esteem. Thanks for reading!
this is great! i need to encourage my daughter to say these things and i need to say them to her more.
I think it’s something all parents should try to work on. Thanks for reading!
So important and so sweet. Love the content.
Thank you so much for reading!
These are great. It’s important to speak love to our kids.
I couldn’t agree more.
I agree that being positive towards your kids is a good idea. I have three girls – 6, 5, and almost 2. I try to be as positive and encouraging to them as best as I can. They are looking towards me for guidance. They way I act towards them will be impacted how they act towards their own kids one day.
You’re exactly right. Thanks for reading, Julie!
This is so important for kids of all ages! I completely agree with this idea and strive to do this for my son.
Exactly, you can never start too early on building self-esteem.
My children are adults now, but we worked very hard when they were little to keep things positive at home. You are right – as parents, we set the tone to all their foundational teachings. We wanted out children to know they were fearfully and wonderfully made and that they were definitely worthy and loved. Your post is a great reminder of those things!
Thank you for reading, Lori!
I 100%agree with all this you just wrote. The one thing I teach my kids is to have confidence in themselves and to be positive towards anything that they do. The way we speak to our kids is how they will act as they get older.
My point exactly! Thanks for reading!
Yes! Great mantras for anyone! I want to share these with my kids.
Thank you!