If kids aren’t working for the things you give them, they’ll grow up expecting everything for free. Instead, make them put effort into everything they receive.
They want a cool new toy? It should be understood they have to help with the dishes after dinner for a week. Eventually your kid will be doing things on his/her own, and you can have more time to yourself.
The spoiled child revolution only started 20 years ago, and it’s obviously not working. Parents are notoriously known for being the most busy people on earth, and with good reason. But you can cut that work time down by simply teaching your kids to do things on their own, as long as it is safe and under your supervision.
RT @ResourcefulMom: and with that I think I just figured out how to have my four hour workweek.
Here are some easy responsibilities you can teach that are safe but still save you time:
See that Twitter link to your right? Tweet me more things you can teach your kid to do on your own, so YOU can have more time to do what you want. It sounds like it will take a while, and this is why parents are always doing things for their kids… to get things done quicker. Understandable. But here’s the truth: the learning curve starts off slowly, then slowly you’ll subtract yourself from the equation in each chore that they do. Frame responsibilities as something not as “momentous,” but something expected. Everything your children do is special, but there’s no need to act like chores are something out of the ordinary.
Does your boss applaud you for getting things in on time every day? At first, a reward is okay, but afterwards, what I call silent rewards can be given.
I’ll explain these at the free NYC Superhero Seminar in September. But for now, I’m going to take a cat nap while my kid is reading a book to herself.