Each of us has an innate or natural predisposition to be more optimistic or more pessimistic. However, this predisposition is not unchangeable... Positive thinking can be trained, focusing on solutions, opportunities, and the good side of things can be trained; instead of on problems, difficulties, and inconveniences.
According to experts, external factors only predict 10% of our long-term happiness, the other 90% depends on how we face those external factors, and that's where we, as parents, can intervene to ensure our children have sufficient resources to face life "positively." In this regard, I propose some ideas/resources, etc., to train this positive thinking in our little ones:
- "Today is a wonderful day!" I love waking up my little ones this way, it doesn't matter if it's raining, thundering, or if I've slept little or not at all... I like it to be the first phrase they hear in the day because just having the opportunity to live it makes it so... maybe now that they are so young they don't give importance to this phrase but I am convinced that with time, this way of seeing the new day will leave a mark on them that will invite them to think that it is true, that every day, just by being so, is already WONDERFUL.
- To value: while we are in the car on the way to school, I like to remind them of the great LUCK they have to be able to go to school or daycare to play, to learn many things, to be with their friends, etc. My 4-year-old daughter is very surprised when I tell her that not all children can do it... many have to walk kilometers on foot to go to school and we arrive at class in a few minutes by car... Teaching them to appreciate what they have, to value it, and to realize their luck is the best vaccine against selfishness...
- Enjoy every moment and teach them that LIFE is made up of MOMENTS and not things... laugh with them, play, sing songs... savor and squeeze every minute of the day trying not to let them suffer from our "stress" and our haste.
- Give thanks: at the end of the day, we always dedicate a few minutes to review what has happened to us and above all, we focus on the good things and give thanks for them. Always, every day, there are good things... we just have to look closely and focus on them instead of on the things that have not been so pleasant... VALUING and BEING GRATEFUL are directly linked to a positive sense of life. Why not practice it from an early age then?
- Involve them from a young age in solidarity activities. Let them see that the world is not always rosy, but that something can always be done to change it... It is proven that helping people around us (family, friends, colleagues, etc.) generates satisfaction and a feeling of happiness.
- Encourage and help them cultivate their own projects, their dreams, what they like to do... it is very important to give them time and space for their hobbies, for them to do what truly fulfills them...
- Try to always speak to them positively, using YES more than NO, emphasizing WHAT NEEDS TO BE DONE instead of what needs to be avoided... That will make them do the same in the long run...
- Last but not least:
- Remember that affection and love are the foundation of all learning
- Give them a lot of self-confidence, let them know that if they want to and make an effort, they can always succeed
- And do not forget that we are their best reference, if we want them to have a positive sense of life, we must start by finding and practicing it ourselves.
If we try to establish these habits in children from a young age, I am sure they will be happier. And you? What other habits can you think of to share the positive spirit of life with our little ones?
