How to Be a Better Parent - 10 Tips  

We all have our own unique way of bringing up our kids. To be a better parent To be a better parent however, you may want to take a look at some of the following ideas that can help you to do so.

dad lying down with baby on his chestDad is lying on the sofa and infant is lying on his chest while they both sleep.

1.  Be a Better Parent & Don’t Scold Your Children Too Unnecessarily

Scolding your child for something they did wrong is one thing, but sometimes parents go just a little too far and it turns into belittling them or nagging them. 

Some parents believe that the higher the expectations they have for their kids, the more successful they will be.

However, by scolding your child all of the time for every little mess up will only promote behavioural problems.

Punishments for bad grades are also harmful. They can kill off the desire for learning in any child.

And, of course, being too strict can have another huge downside - a poor relationship with your child.

That’s why you should only punish your kids for things that actually matter. A broken cup should’t be on that list. In otherwords, don’t sweat the small stuff! 

2.  Don’t Miss Out on the Most Important Moments in Your
Children’s Lives

Every parent has so many commitments, and it's not easy to juggle them all, but children really want their parents to be there for them.

For example, some occasions that might not seem that important to an adult, may really mean a lot to kids. 

Children need to have someone close to them in moments like these. Even if you think you have a good reason to miss your child’s school play, do your best to be present.

Find time to go to the movies together, be sure to go to the after school BBQ, together decorate your house for the holidays.

The bond between you and your children gets stronger as you create memories together.

Otherwise in the future, you’ll feel bad about how many great moments passed you by. 

3.  Be a Better Parent & Allow Your Kids to Play Plenty of Creative Games

girlsplayingsoccerThree girls are playing soccer outdoors on a beautiful sunny day.

Of course, playing things with your kids won’t make them into great artists or musicians in the future, but, hey, there’s always a chance. There are advantages to doing this though. 

Any kind of activity, like drawing or playing with play dough, has a positive effect on developing their intelligence, imagination and increasing their vocabulary. 

Also, if your kid is engaged in a lot of different activities, it makes it easier for you to find out what they have an interest in and what they're good at.

This is important since they can show promising abilities even at a young age and develop them more later. 

4.  Remember to Take Lots of Photos or Videos

Not taking photos is something that obviously will not have any impact on your kids lives.

However, if you want to have some amazing memories of them, (and not just in your head, because you tend to forget things as you get older).

dadtakingpicofdaughterA young girl wearing a red dress, standing beside a building and smiling while being photographed.

Then it’s a great way to capture special moments. 

That way when they have grown up and get out on their own, you can look through the photos at anytime.

They will remind you of times with them in the past. 

Whenever you look at the photos with your grown up kids, it will allow you to relive all of their milestones with them. 

That’s why parents often regret not having taken enough pictures of their children.

Although, it’s easy to simply snap a photo using your phone today.

You may not have it available at all times or even think of taking a photo because you are busy doing other things with your child. 

Ie. I took plenty of pictures of the girls up till the age of 14 and then eventually stopped all together.

As they got older I would occasionally try to snap a pic of them, but they would hide their faces.

It was really weird because they were always taking selfies of themselves or with friends.

I guess maybe when I wanted a picture of them they didn't have their makeup on and their hair all fixed right. 

5. Be a Better Parent & Take Your Child’s Opinion Into Account

“You’re too young to decide”, “Adults know better” are probably phrases you heard quite often when you were a kid.

It was irritating, right? This type of attitude can have a serious affect on a child’s future. 

When a child feels like their opinion doesn’t matter, it is possible that they will grow up to be insecure.

And it’s logical if you think about it. How can they know what they want in life if there is always someone who makes decisions for them? 

So, rather than deciding for them, discuss the situation together, and meet them half way. 

6. Be a Better Parent & Spend Time Communicating with Your Child

Communication between parents and their kid’s is important. Before you know it they will be grown up and living out on their own. 

So, do yourself a favour and set aside some time to communicate with your child and be the best parent you can.

Remember, there’s no turning back time, so let yourself enjoy the moments you spend together.

Eg. I always communicated with my kids. That was not an issue, the problem was, people were always telling me, "before you know it they will be all grown up and living out on their own."

Didn't believe that so much then, I mean 18 years is a long time. Or is it? I think what people forget to mention is that it's really more like 12 years.

Once they turn 13 and become teenagers, they will communicate with you some, but not nearly like they use to.

dadcommunicatingwithkidsDad drinking coffee, boy and girl enjoying cereal while communicating with one another.

7.  Be a Better Parent & Be Sure to Educate Them About Money 

For some reason, parents neglect to discuss money with their kids. Of course, a child doesn't believe that money grows on trees, but they might think it just magically appears in the ATM. 

Without some sort of education on personal finance and responsible spending, children don’t understand the real worth of money.

And when they grow up they find it hard to manage their own income. 

Simply by giving your child some pocket money will teach them how to save up and spend wisely.

If your child is an older teen, you can let them earn their own money. They can mow the lawn of a neighbour or babysit. 

Every time you go shopping together tell your kids how much money they can spend, this way you are teaching them to spend wisely.

All the tips will provide your children with opportunities to learn about things like budgeting, saving and being more responsible. 

8.  At All Costs, You Need to Make Your Child Happy!

Good memories from our childhood are a real treasure for most of us. We like to go back in our mind to that time when we were carefree and quite often every day was filled with doing something for the first time.

Every child should have a lot of new experiences and live in a healthy atmosphere. 

If you can make your kids happy, they will develop more eagerly, therefore, easily adjusting to their adult life and starting new relationships.

So, take them to an amusement park, play pretend with them, or play in the back yard. Try to do something exciting at least once a day together to make sure your child has as many happy moments in their life as possible. 

9.  Be a Better Parent & Give Lots of Hugs and Kisses to Your Children Often 

momgivingdaugtherkissMom and daughter giving each other a kiss on the cheek.

Hugs are not only a way to show affection, but also scientifically proven to be good for our health, because they help protect against stress.

Besides, it’s simply nice to hug your own child. 

Unfortunately, sometimes parents don’t do it as often as they should. Some parents believe that when you are affectionate with a child it will make them less obedient in the long run. 

Others, especially when talking about babies, believe that hugging & holding a baby all the time will mean that they’ll expect it in the future.

But the truth is, the older a child gets, the less they want to be hugged. 

So enjoy the hugs with your kids while you can. 

10.  You Need to Be Consistent

Consistency might just be one of the biggest challenges when raising your child. For example, you usually don’t let your kids eat unhealthy food. 

And then one afternoon, you are so busy with work, that you decide to just order them a pizza. Next thing you know they’re demanding it for every meal.

It may feel next-to-impossible to maintain the exact same standards for your children daily, but not trying to do so often leads to major regrets for parents. 

Kids get confused about what’s allowed and what’s not. Without clear boundaries, they probably won’t behave the way you want them to, and obedience issues become inevitable. 

Also, don’t forget that you should follow your own rules to set an example. Like: To be a better parent, you should not take your phone to meals with you - and that means no phones for anyone.