I personally love the idea of having specific challenges and rising to a challenge. Having parents and mentors who have challenged me has changed my life so much for the better. Peaceful parenting or Conscious parenting is not void of challenge. From my experience, children like challenge and like people to challenge and encourage them.
But here are some things that I find that really help when issuing a challenge to a child, a challenge that may be outside of the immediate interests or ability of a child. The challenge is more likely to be accepted and completed when:
👉 A child already feels safe and connected to parents with a good and caring relationship.
👉A child has good reasons to trust the intention of the parent. For example the child senses the challenge is not a way for the parent to feel good about themselves, or to satisfy the parents needs.
👉The child understands the reason behind the challenge.
👉The child has had the ability to follow their own interests and as a result feels open and interested in new challenges.
👉The challenge is co-created in a way that the child has input and control.
👉A growth mindset culture, a culture of failure being a learning opportunity, is present.
So, go ahead and challenge your children. Many children are ready for it.
