A Fine Parent

A Life Skills Blog Exclusively For Parents

Frustrated About Discipline? It’s Time to Fix It, Once and For All…

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(This article is part of the Community Challenge series. Get free article updates here.)

Love kids, hate discipline?You know, every parent I know loves good behavior, but hates discipline.

How about you?

Do you love your little angels, but hate the drama and the stress that inevitably bubbles up when they misbehave and you are the one with the unenviable task of setting them straight?

What if we could keep the good behavior, but eliminate the stress and drama associated with discipline?

It’s not a wild-eyed fantasy or a pipe dream. If you are a part of our A Fine Parent Community for long enough, you know we’re all about research-backed, practical action-taking.

What say, we apply that same spirit to discipline?

Feel up for a little challenge?

Introducing Project: Discipline Without Drama

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One Simple Trick to Break the Nagging/Screaming Habit

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(This article is part of the Habits series. Get free article updates here.)

(This article is part of our series on Habits.)

quote_first_we_form_habits_then_they_form_usHas this ever happened to you?

You decide very firmly that you will not nag and scream at your kids, come what may.

And the very next minute your kids do the one thing that you just cannot stand. And before you know it, you are screaming at them like only a raving lunatic, or a very frustrated parent, can. And things go downhill faster than you can say “Not agaaaain!”

Yep. We’ve all been there.

I just happened to be there (for the umpteenth time!) while I was reading the book The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business.

And suddenly a light bulb went on.

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The Ultimate Guide For Helping Your Kids Create a Habit. Any Habit.

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(This article is part of the Habits series. Get free article updates here.)

(This article is part of our series on Habits.)

good_habits_are_as_addictive_as_bad_habits_but_much_more_rewardingEver wonder why some routines stick, while others fall flat?

Maybe you’ve got your kids into the habit of getting to bed on time each night, but come morning, try as you might, you can’t get them out of bed and out the door on time without a few screaming matches… (or is it the other way round?)

What gives?

Wouldn’t it be great if we could just figure out the secret of creating habits consistently?

As it turns out, there is a method to this madness!

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What Michael Phelps Can Teach us About Eliminating Power Struggles With Our Kids

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(This article is part of the Habits series. Get free article updates here.)

(This article is part of our series on Habits.)

Motivation is what gets you started. Habit is what keeps you going.Michael was a restless and hyperactive kid. One of his elementary school teachers impatiently complained to his mom – “I just don’t ever see him being able to focus on anything in his life”. In 6th grade, he was diagnosed with Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).

And yet, today we know him as the Michael Phelps – the most decorated, legendary Olympian of all times who has to his credit 18 gold medals (twice as many as the next highest gold medal holder!), 2 silver medals and 2 bronze medals.

Ever wonder how Michael may have gone from a hyperactive kid to a laser focused Olympic gold winning phenomenon? You should. In his super achievements, lies a simple secret… the secret that can help us eliminate the biggest headache of parents around the world – power struggles!

The Secret

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How to Prepare Your Kids to Deal Effectively With Setbacks and Failures

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(This article is part of the Mindset series. Get free article updates here.)

Growth Mindset for Kids(This article is part of our series on Mindset.)

As you watch your child take on something new, how many of you silently pray “Oh gosh, please, please let him not fail”?

It’s the natural parenting instinct in us.

Most of us do this, even though we know that statistically, there is no way anyone can go through their life without failing a few times. And we do it in spite of understanding at some level that a few setbacks may actually be good for for our kids – to learn perseverance, grit, resilience; to build character and to feel a deep fulfilling satisfaction when they succeed.

So, given that our kids will fail at some time or the other, and failure is in some sense necessary for them (and that we have a very weak stomach for it), how can we respond appropriately in case of setbacks and failures, so we can teach our kids to deal with them effectively?

That is the question we will deal with today. [Read more…]