Raising happy, confident kids is the goal of most parents. Some parents struggle to find ways to talk with their children to promote happiness and confidence. I recommend using a combination of communication phrases that promote acceptance and develop a growth mindset.
Being accepted for who you are by your parent or parents, allows kids to feel safe enough to develop healthily and to thrive. Growth mindset helps kids try to learn new things, to persist, and also deal with difficulties in a more flexible way. Growth mindset is also important for thriving in life.
Here are 50 phrases you can use to raise a happy, confident child:
- I love you just the way you are
- Every day in every way, you get better and better
- I love the way you . . .
- I love you more and more every day
- I love the way you keep going even when it’s tricky
- You can’t do it yet, but soon you will
- You are on the right track
- I can see a big improvement from all that practice
- Your hard work is paying off
- Let’s try it a different way
- If you are stuck, try it a different way
- I know you feel frustrated, but I love you all the same
- I love having you as my kid
- I love when we have fun together
- I noticed you can ____. I am so proud of you
- I was telling your grandma how amazing you are at . . .
- Mistakes help you learn
- What did you learn from your mistake?
- What can you do next time?
- What would you do differently next time?
- How did you figure that out?
- I can see you put the effort in, well done
- What part would you like help with?
- You have lots of great ideas
- I saw you working hard
- What are your ideas?
- What do you think you could try?
- I love that you don’t give up easily when you want to learn something
- Every day I can see you are growing and learning
- Let’s see if we can train your brain in . . .
- We love a challenge in our family
- Let’s see if we can solve this challenge
- Your brain can grow. If you can’t do it now you will soon
- You handled that well
- I love you no matter what you do
- I love your insides and your outsides
- I can see you put in a lot of effort
- I love hearing what you think
- I love looking at your face
- I love you even when you struggle with big feelings
- I love that when you make a mistake, you work out how to fix it
- You can’t do it yet, but you will
- If something is difficult, it means you are learning
- It’s OK to make mistakes, if you don’t make mistakes you don’t learn
- I love that you don’t give up easily
- You are a problem solver
- This challenge might take time and effort
- I love that you try new things
- You are important to me
- I love being your parent
I would love to hear how you find using these phrases with your child. Experiment with what works best. You may even find some of these statements helpful for your own well-being and confidence as a parent
Originally published on PsychCentral