The best New Year’s resolutions support happier, healthier lifestyles. They help people to feel fulfilled. If your child needs help with a New Year’s resolution, you can be their coach and cheerleader!
The support of parents is vital. The first step is letting your child know that you support his or her resolution and will help in any way that you can. People need to feel loved. In particular, kids need to know that their thoughts, feelings and wishes for the future are being respected and honoured.
For this reason, we recommend asking your son or daughter how you can help to make a New Year’s resolution a reality.
Offer Some Practical Assistance
For example, if your child wants to make a lifestyle change in New Year, talk to him or her about how he or she plans to make this happen. Ask what you can do, from planning healthier meals with correct portion sizes to scheduling an exercise class for your child to going for a nice, long walk with him or her (and perhaps the family dog, too) each day.
It will make your child very happy to know that he or she has this kind of support and encouragement!
No matter what kind of resolution there is, you’ll find that options are out there in terms of how you can help. Whether it’s getting a tutor for a kid who wants to do better in school or helping a child to break a bad habit, you can help to bring about positive results by being present, listening and offering practical assistance.
Obviously, resolutions will depend on the age. For example, a good resolution for a five year old is to always put their cup/plate in the sink after dinner or say please/thank you more often. A good resolution for a teen is to resolve to do 30-minutes of reading every day, go to bed half an hour earlier on a nightly basis, or spend at least one day of the month volunteering for a good cause.
Keep Your Child on Track
If you feel that a New Year’s resolution is beneficial, you should make an effort to keep your child on track with that resolution. This means gentle reminders when the child “falls off the wagon.” There is only such much you can do here – after all, kids have minds of their own and nagging is counter-productive. A few gentle reminders should be sufficient. If your child honestly has the will to change, your reminder will reinforce the value of the New Year’s resolution.
Now that you know more about how to help your child in this way, you’ll be ready to offer the sort of concern that kids really need when they are trying to make beneficial life changes. Ultimately, your love is the best support. So, giving your child lots of love and guidance as he or she tries to keep the resolution will be most important.
