(ThySistas.com) I feel it is important and imperative that youth participate in at least one role of leadership during their formative years in order to learn the process and outcome of such an experience. Today, however, I am not speaking of youth being in leadership positions but rather being leaders in their day to day life experience.
In today’s society, being a part of the “in” crowd is trendy. Very few desire to be authentic or to create anything, the average youth merely falls in place with what is happening around them. Too many of our youth are being influenced by their environment rather than positively influencing their environment.
So how do we begin to raise leaders rather than followers?
1. Teach them to make decisions. We must learn the process
of making our own decisions at some point in our life, why not give your child a head start by raising them to make their own decisions? As parents, it is natural to take on the dominate “I’m always right” role yet in actuality you may be teaching your child that it is better and easier to follow others rather than take an active stance leading others. It is impossible to be with our children 24 hours of the day, prepare them to make solid decisions with and without you.
2. Share your shortcomings! Share your wisdom with your children. Let them know you made mistakes in the past and currently make them in the present. If you are too ‘perfect’ your children will attempt to hide everything which means you can’t guide them properly. Be human! Tell a story and share what you learned from you. Even you will benefit from those memories and seeing how far you’ve come in life.
3. Encourage Self Expression. Communication rules the nation! Yet when it comes to youth, they are encouraged to “stay in a child’s place”. It is our responsibility to teach our children how to express their feelings and we must learn to listen to them. Children learn how to respect others by the respect that we as parents give to them. We should never be too busy to listen. Youth who lack communication skills follow the footsteps of other youth who do, wouldn’t you rather your child be a leader? The voice of their peers? The voice of their generation? Encourage them to speak, write, draw, dance or sing their feelings for the world to experience.
4. Encourage them to ask questions. Yeah, I said it! Closed mouths don’t get fed. Allow them to ask as many questions as they like. Followers never ask questions, they just do as they are told! When they don’t understand something in class, let them know that it is okay to raise their hands to get help. Teach them through our willingness to continue learning, that “I don’t know” isn’t an acceptable answer. If you don’t know, find out! Lead by example.
5. Have Fun! Make childhood fun. Create ways for your child to experience happiness with you. Take a bike ride, challenge them to a game of basketball or tennis, have a coloring contest, have a bake off. Find games and activities that you both enjoy so when they ‘grow up’, they can tell wonderful stories about their healthy childhood rather than tales of being oppressed by their parents simply because they choose to have them and of course “they pay the bills”.
The conversation does not end here, we need to hear from you! What are you doing in your household to build healthy, confident leaders? What experience/individual helped you to release your inner leader?
Staff Writer; Dina Tuff
333rd Eye Healing Temple
Reconnecting Consciousness to Magick
Official Website; http://www.333rdeyehealing.com
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