How to Be a Positive Role Model as a Parent

Have you ever wondered how you can be a postivie role model as a parent? Every child needs a positive role model in their lives. No baby is born knowing exactly what they should do and how to behave, and no baby is born knowing how to be a good person. Each child needs to have at least one positive role model in their lives, and if you’re a parent, that job will fall to you. 

Photo by Tatiana Syrikova from Pexels

There may be other people around your little one who are also excellent role models, but you are the one they are with most of the time, and you are the one they are going to pay most attention to, at least when they’re younger.

Children often learn by mimicking their parents, so it’s crucial that you always stay aware of how you’re acting. You might not realize that your kids are paying attention, but they are, and they are always learning. With that in mind, here are some tips about how to be a positive role model for children.

Healthy Living

All parents want their children to be healthy. We want them to eat a healthy, well-balanced diet, we want them to exercise by playing outside, and we want them to keep their bodies in good condition.  But if we want all of this, we have to live up to the challenge too. 

It would be unfair to expect a child to eat all their vegetables and to snack on fruit if we eat junk food and snack on cookies all the time. It would be unfair to expect a child to run around outside for fun when we’re binge-watching shows or scrolling through social media. Kids often want to do what the parent is doing. They won’t necessarily do as they are told, if they see you doing something contrary to that.

So, if you want your child to be healthy, you need to adopt healthy habits too. Mealtime is an ideal time to do this. Try to all eat together at the table when possible, at least several times a week. This is good for family bonding as you can find out more about what your children are doing, but it also means your child can see you eating healthily. 

Self-Improvement

Self-improvement in life is something we should all work toward as much of as possible. It doesn’t matter how old you are, how settled you might be, or what kind of education you had when you were younger, there is always a chance for self-improvement.  It’s a wonderful way to be a positive role model for your child too.

Self-improvement can come in many forms. You might decide to switch jobs and try something new. Maybe you’ll go back to school to learn more about a subject you always loved – or a subject that’s entirely new to you. Perhaps you’ll volunteer, or you’ll take up a new hobby such as completing wooden jigsaw puzzles or starting a collection. It could be anything.

Whatever it is you do to improve yourself, it will be good for your children to see that you are working on your self-improvement goals. They’ll  want to do the same, and they’ll be more likely to try new things and continue their own self-improvement throughout their lives.

Be Yourself

One of the best things you can do when you’re considering how to be a positive role model for your kids is to always be yourself. The authentic you, even with your flaws (because everyone has flaws), is always going to be a much better role model than any kind of fake front you might put on. 

Pretending to be someone or something you’re not, just to impress other people will make you miserable, and it might even strain the relationship you have with your children, as they will never feel as though they really know you. You won’t be able to be a good role model, since your kids won’t know how to follow you if you keep changing.

Self-Control

Self-control is another useful life skill that a good role model can teach their children. However, as important as self-control is, it’s also crucial that emotions can be released because bottled up emotions can cause harm.

The goal of self-control, though, is to find the appropriate time, place, and way to let those feelings out to deal with them..

Anger is a particularly powerful emotion, and angry outbursts can cause a lot of damage. Showing your children that there are other ways to deal with anger such as stepping away from the situation for some time to think, or going for a run, will help them navigate through life, and it will improve your relationship. 

No parent can be an absolutely perfect role model all the time. But, with a focus on the goal of being a great role model to your kids, you’ll be helping them grow in so many ways.

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