We live in a competitive world. There is competition in every field and at every age. Parents have started preparing their children at a very young age for the competition. But what they do not understand is that when they prepare their children to become the best, they create a competition in kids of the same age. Other parents who watch these kids excel at such a young age get influenced, and they push their children to perfect themselves. Preparing the kids for a future competition is not wrong, but the feeling of competitiveness among the children can sometimes be harmful to others. It is important to encourage kids for healthy competition. How to encourage healthy competition in kids?
Children do not understand the meaning of competitiveness. A competition is an event that gives a person the opportunity to establish supremacy in that particular area or field. People these days find various ways to win which include unethical ways like cheating and dishonesty. If a person uses such a path to win the competition, then it leads to an unhealthy competition. One bad fish spoils the whole pond. Others will start using such devious methods to succeed in life and which is why corruption exists all across the world. What happens when your child engages in unhealthy competition? Your child will resist participation in any competition. They will start lying to avoid an activity or an event that can be competitive. Children may express anxiety and depression because the unhealthy competitiveness may take a toll on their mind. They may not be able to cope with their surroundings and the dishonest competition that the others pursue. Children are very sensitive so when there is a conflict between what they have learned and what they observe in their environment, the kids get affected the most. Children become compulsive liars gradually in order to avoid such situations that stress them. If there is a healthy competition, then the children will find the courage to participate and learn. Their self-esteem will get a boost and they will be keen to learn new skills. Healthy competition promotes overall growth for a child. If children inherit the false means of achieving a goal from the others, then they will be creating a crooked world. It is extremely significant to encourage healthy competition in kids. So, let us learn how to encourage healthy competition in kids.
#1. Explain The Importance Of Trying
Parents are the first teachers for the children. Teach your children about the importance of participation. The kids should understand that winning or losing does not matter. What matters is that they try their best to achieve something they desire. If they do not try, they will never succeed. They cannot expect an object to come to them without making an effort to reach it. They will have to stand up and reach the object and only then they can get what they want. Teach your kids to focus on working rather than focusing on the outcomes. If they work hard they will bear the fruits themselves. If the children start concentrating on trying, then one day they will achieve something great. Failure is the reason why most of the people give up on their dreams. When a person falls they are afraid to stand up again, and until they stand up again, they will never even get close to their dream. Learning to get up every time they fall and never giving up on their dreams is a precious lesson for the kids. Encourage the kids to keep trying until they succeed. They will make mistakes and mistakes are a proof that they are trying.
#2. Be Their Role Model
Kids learn faster by observing the surroundings. They watch their parents and mimic whatever they do. They watch the father going to work every day and the kids wish to work as well so the parents become a role model for the children. The parents should lead by example. Display a positive attitude in front of the children and whenever you play with your kids, do not get competitive with them because if you do, then you will win the game by all means. Your child is young and does not know all the possible ways to win. Do not cheat at anything around your kids instead teach them to be honest with themselves and others by showing honesty at home. If you want your children to be the best, then you have to be best as well. They will learn from you so if you become perfect at something your children will automatically be influenced to reach the perfection.
#3. Love Them Unconditionally
Parents feel proud when their child excels at something. They like to brag about their kids and flaunt among the other parents. While this may be a healthy practice but most of the times, it puts a wrong effect on the children. It pressurizes the children to achieve something otherwise their parents will not love them. Most of the children and teenagers accept the fact that their parents feel proud when they score good grades in school. The children are punished when they do not do well. It is a wrong practice because children need love and support from their parents. Do not condition your love on their success. They need your love the most when they fail. They can do amazing things in their life if you support them when they fall. If you don’t, then probably the child will have a stressful period which will have a negative effect on the child’s health and mind.
#4. Emphasize On Enjoying The Competition
Competitions usually bring stress and tension for people because they want to win and winning is hard when you are surrounded by lots of talented people. But if people begin enjoying the competition, then the outcomes will be positive. Let your child enjoy whatever they do. If they have fun during the competition, then they will be eager to participate more, and they will learn something new every day. Teach the kids to cherish every moment they live whether or not successful. Rather than anticipating the results, they should focus on enjoying. When they will enjoy the activity, they will definitely get praised for it. The competition should excite the child rather than scaring them. The child should test themselves and try something new and push their limits. The child will enjoy a positive outlook in life and they will carve a great personality out of themselves.
#5. Do Not Compare The Child
If you compare your children with the other children, then your child will feel lost. They will become depressed because they are not able to make you happy. The children enter competitions so that they can make you proud. When they fail in making you proud, then they disappoint themselves. They do not live up to their own expectations and therefore, they stay upset and melancholy envelops them. They will avoid any participation and they will not compete because they assume that they have lost the battle already. So, do not compare your children with others because it may encourage unhealthy competition. It will hurt your child’s self-esteem and self-worth. You should encourage kids to participate and learn as much as they can from their failures.
#6. Encourage Training
Encourage your child to get trained. If they want to achieve something they will have to first learn the skill. If they enter into a competition without preparation, then the chances are that they will fail but if they enter the competition prepared under training, then their chances of success increases. Without a formal training, they may pass the competition but to win it, they will need expertise. Training may be difficult and tiresome but they are important for their better life and better career in future. Their hobby may turn into a profession if they are trained well. Leading a career that is your hobby is a perfect job for any person. When a child takes formal training, then the scope for improvement expands. Praise your child every time they take a step towards progress. A formal training will also add to their confidence. They will learn the right way to present themselves because presentation along with skills weighs a lot. It will lead to overall personality development.
#7. Accept The Child For Who They Are
We all know that every human has been created differently and no person is like the other. Children are different from each other as well so accept your child the way they are. They may not be good at something you wanted them to exceed at but that does not mean that they are not good at anything. Their skills may be different from others or they may have recognized their talent till now. Most of the kids at a young age do not know about their gifts. If you want your child to explore their talents, then ask them to participate in different activities so that they can know their interests and talents.
Do your kids practice healthy competition? Share your views with us in the comments section below.
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