Dealing With Parenting Challenges – Guest Post by Karen Becker

Karen BeckerThis week’s My Mountain post is a little different as we’ve got some expert advice from lifecoach Karen Becker, who specialises in working with divorced and blended families.  Today she is kindly sharing her parenting advice.


When I teach Love & Logic or my Balanced Parenting Class I get the same questions in every session:

  • How can I get my children to stop arguing, screaming, or yelling when
    I tell them no?
  • How do I get my children to do their chores?
  • How do I teach my children to speak to me with respect?

It’s like clockwork. The classes start with my asking what their biggest issues are, and each one of these questions will come out of the parent’s mouths in every class. If you’re like most parents, you’re feeling the pain of at least one of these on a daily basis.

The secret to overcoming these issues comes down to 3 things you can change that will change how your children react to you.

Children need to feel a part of something, positively. How are you talking to your children on a daily basis? There was a statistic I just heard that said we spend an average of 7 minutes per day talking TO our children and the rest of it is spent talking AT them. Take a step back and review a day. How many, “Get your shoes on”, “Clean up that mess”, “Where’s your homework” or other statements did your kids get? How many times did you engage in an actual conversation with them?

For most parents, they’re amazed at how little they talk to their children. It’s an important awareness parents make. Think about jobs you’ve had. If your boss only talked to
you when they told you what to do, how motivated would you be to do what they asked? If you’re like me, you wouldn’t be very motivated. Instinctively, you put up walls, am I right? Why would it be any different for your kids?

Everyday, find something positive they do and thank them for it. Make eye contact when you greet them in the morning and when you say goodnight at the end of the day. Smile at them when you can and know that just changing those few things will help motivate them to want to help you.

Children need to see the results of their actions. Your job as parents is to teach your children the skills needed to be self-sufficient, successful adults, right? Start with the end in mind. What happens when you do a good job at work? Raises, promotions, and positive reinforcement in the form of awards and recognition, right? What about if you’re doin a poor job at work? Maybe you get written up, you lose out on promotions, you don’t get a raise. Why would it be any different for children? Because they’re children, there’s a right way and a wrong way to do this, but the basics are the same. Whether their action was positive or negative, they should see the results: positive or negative. (Hint: Kids also need to know what they should be doing before they’re expected to do it.)

Children need to know that mistakes happen.  Yes, kids will make mistakes, as do you and I. What happens when you make a mistake? Shame washes over you, doesn’t it? You feel shame because you feel like it shouldn’t have happened or that it could have been avoided. You feel shame and fear because if someone else notices, what will they think of you? The same applies to your kids.

Your kids are watching you for cues, so when you make a mistake, the way you handle it shows them how to handle it. When they make a mistake, you may need to guide them on the path to emotion regulation, but doing that teaches them a great lesson: mistakes happen, how you deal with them either moves you past the mistake or keeps you reliving it.

That’s it. Those are the secrets. By following those 3 steps, it can change your house and the way it works. I’ve worked with hundreds of parents over the years and can attest to the fact that changing your mindset just a little bit can have the biggest impact.


Karen Becker is a Family Coach who has spent years working with couples, one-on-one and in groups, as they transition from parenting together in a relationship to co-parenting. Her own experiences as a co-parent have helped build curriculum, communication techniques and worksheets that help clients take the negative emotion out of their relationship and put the focus on the children. She has helped many rebuild their lives after a divorce or separation whether children were involved or not. She has a Master’s Degree in Counseling and applies these skills when coaching clients.

Karen can be reached through her website [www.karenbeckerlifecoach.com], Facebook [www.facebook.com/karenbeckerlifecoach], or Twitter [@momandtherapist].

We have just two guest posts remaining in this series so if you’d like to share you biggest parenting challenge please drop me a line at butterflymum83@gmail.com or click here for more details.

Keep Calm and Carry On Linking Sunday
Mudpie Fridays

12 comments on “Dealing With Parenting Challenges – Guest Post by Karen Becker

  1. I hope I talk with my child more than 7minutes but I have never really thought about it. I do however get frustrated when they don’t listen and that’s when the to the point demands come out so maybe I should work on not instructing and more guiding through conversation #KCACOLS

  2. This is absolutely brilliant, Karen! Such excellent advice and this works for children at all stages – not just younger ones – I’ve three teens and I know that this applies to them too. I am big on communication being at the forefront of good parenting and being teens there is plenty of opportunity for mistakes – they need support through this stage and recognition that we all make mistakes – that shame is a terrible feeling and one that parents need to parent and support their child through – no one likes feeling like that. I’ve just started a Vlog series with two teen specialists looking at how to better parent teens and this advice is just fantastic! A wonderful, wonderful post – thank you for sharing! #MarvMondays
    justsayingmum recently posted…“Mummy, Did Daddy Really Used to Have a Six Pack?”My Profile

  3. This is great advice! Do you have any for husbands too? kidding, kinda of 😉 I never really think about how much I talk at people. My son is still really small but is on the verge of starting to talk so it will best if I start these early habits early on. Thanks! #KCACOLS

  4. Fab tips, really makes you think! I’m a huge culprit of talking at my son I think, though I do try to catch myself and get down to his level and have a conversation with him as much as possible. Thanks for linking up to #MarvMondays. Kaye xo

  5. Great tips! They seem so simple but I’m sure they are effective. That quote about us spending our time talking to vs at our kids really got me thinking! I’m going to make a big effort to be more positive with my kids. Thanks! #BloggerClubUk

  6. These are really helpful tips. The comment about talking “to” your kids instead of “at” your kids really hits home for me. I try my best but I think sometimes in the rushing and business of our lives I can do too much talking “at” rather than talking “to”. Thanks for the tips #KCACOLS

  7. I’d like to make one big step with thinking a bit more about how my kids pick up on my facial cues….it’s natural to me and normally says more than a few grumpy words. I try, sometimes it works, sometimes it all gets a bit messy…my family and I are a work in progress!:)

    mainy

    #KCACOLS
    mainy – myrealfairy recently posted…The Promise…can it be broken?My Profile

  8. These are really great pieces of advice. One thing that always makes me laugh and cringe in equal measures is when I shout at my children to stop shouting. Pot, kettle? I’m think I talk TO my children a lot but I am going to try and listen to myself and see if I actually do. Thanks so much for linking up to #KCACOLS. Hope you come back again on Sunday xx
    Clare recently posted…Exciting News! Changes on the horizon…My Profile

  9. These are great tips, especially the first one – it’s really pulled me up and made me think about how much I engage in conversation rather than giving instruction and I’m sure the balance could do with a little shifting towards the former. Thank you for sharing.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.

CommentLuv badge