4 Ways to build your child’s confidence

Building children's self esteem

Confidence - some have too much of it. Others, not enough. Just like Rome, confidence can't be built in a day. It is a long-term process that is important for your child.

It is common for mums and dads to feel at a loss when it comes to knowing how to build children's confidence. And it's not just confidence too, we all want our little ones to grow up as happy and well-adjusted individuals. So, spare a few minutes as we share steps you can take to get your child confident.

Praise your child for jobs well done

Your child did a good job? Praise them! It will make them proud of their accomplishments. One thing to take note of though, is that you may want to commend them on their efforts and growth rather than on the results. It will appear more meaningful to your child when they see that you recognise the work they did rather than the outcome.

Saying things like “Wow! You put in a lot of effort” or “Good job in putting the time in to complete” will help your child develop a healthy work ethic, with a feeling of accomplishment keeping them motivated.

Make them take the lead and show initiative

One way to give them confidence while striking off some of your chore lists is to give your young one household duties or even small tasks that will build their confidence. They’ll begin to feel responsible for certain things, and over time, will focus their energy on doing a job well done. Tasks could be as simple as making their beds or cleaning their rooms.

Show them you appreciate their efforts by gradually "upgrading" their duties to bigger chores like setting the dinner table or helping you pick what’s for dinner.

Give them new skills to master

Strong resilience is a sure-fire way to raise your child's confidence. Give them plenty of opportunities to practise and master different skills by enrolling them for music lessons, arts & crafts classes, or even new sports. As they learn to master these new skills, they will inadvertently build self-esteem and soon, they’ll approach every new task with confidence.

Turn mistakes into positive learning

One thing that parents often do is punish children for mistakes. Although, as adults, we may be more resilient to the times when we make mistakes, we need to remember that children are still young and being punished for something they have no control over will have them feeling sad and losing confidence. Much like Geniebook’s Revision feature that helps your child revisit their mistakes. Here, they can practise on topics that they previously had problems with. Over time, with more practice, they’ll be able to get better, and in turn, their confidence will soar too. Always remind your child that failure isn’t the end. From failures, they should learn how to pick themselves up and ensure they will not repeat it. Success comes from every failure, so boost your child’s spirit and give them the support to keep on trying until they do.

Raising a confident next generation

Self-confidence is a superpower. Once your child starts to believe in themselves, the magic starts happening.

Turn around the way you speak to your child about everyday occurrences, and you’ll soon discover how they’ll surprise you. As a parent, we need to take on the role of cheerleader to spur the little ones to be more confident.