If at first...

I just realized today, that when I complete today's post I will have blogged for sixteen days straight! Not too shabby! It proves that when you set your mind to do something you really want to do, anything is possible! I know this is just a small goal, but the beauty of accomplishing the smaller goals is that you gain the willpower to try something even more ambitious. Your confidence is boosted and you start to believe in yourself again and in your capabilities.

That is why goal setting is so important for children. I always stress the younger the better and there is a good reason for this, as how a child perceives himself starts very early in life. Each new mile stone, such as learning to roll over or crawl teaches a child about their own capabilities. They may fall over but they try again and again and then one day they actually succeed, but without acknowledgement from others for their persistence it really doesn't mean a lot. Research has shown that even if a child is pleased with his achievement, if he doesn't feel loved and appreciated for his efforts, he may still end up with low self esteem.

As adults we like to be acknowledged by the boss for our hard work or by our spouse if we stick to our diet and lose a few pounds, so why wouldn't a child need the same kind of adulation - something to think about!

Happy Parenting,

Monicka

Goal Setting

Day five of my blogging challenge, and the topic for today is "goal setting." I read this awesome book on willpower and it inspired me to set a goal of my own; which is to improve my writing by blogging on a daily basis for a minimum of thirty minutes. By following a few of the suggestions in the book, such as setting aside an allotted time to work on whichever goal you choose. In that allotted time you don't have to work on your goal, but you can't do anything else. You can sit there and twiddle your thumbs or look off into space but that is about the extent of it. Another suggestion is to hold yourself accountable by telling someone close to you of your intentions. That way they can check up on you from time to time to see if you are following through and give you gentle nudge if you start dragging your butt : ) Willpower is just like a muscle and if you start using it on a regular basis it will get stronger - the caveat being; like a muscle if you use it too much you can burn it out - so start slow in the beginning.

You can help your child to set small attainable goals, but nothing too lofty or they could get discouraged. As they start realizing the smaller goals they will gain confidence and be able to set even bigger goals. Speaking of bigger goals I read an article yesterday about the importance of not setting your goals too small, but that is only when it comes to goal setting grown ups. I will tell you what that is all about in tomorrows blog. So until we meet again...

To help get your little ones started on their goals I am including this link to our kidsgoals goal setting ladder.

Happy Parenting and Goal Setting,

Monicka

Goals & Due Dates

Hello to readers of the kidsgoals blog:

It has been a few weeks since I have blogged and March is almost over so figured it was about time.:))

I finally got my act together and sent out the March newsletter. I was dragging my heels a bit because the article I chose for the newsletter while relevant, was sadly the last article Cassie wrote for kidsgoals. It all just seemed so final, and made it difficult to go forward. I decided to give myself a bit of a nudge and a deadline and made it a goal to get it out before the weekend. I was going to give myself two days, but once I got started I could not stop and finished it in a few hours. Funny how that works sometimes.

I have been really bad about procrastinating lately as much as that goes against the grain of what kidsgoals is all about. How can I tell my readers the importance of goal setting, when I can't seem to follow my own advice. Remember kids learn by example and I have not been setting a very good example!

I believe I am back on track now and for the April newsletter I am going to give myself a deadline with very little wiggle room. I find that once I write down a deadline I have a better chance of following through with the work involved in bringing the goal to fruition. Remember it isn't a goal until you give it a due date!

Happy Parenting,

Monicka

Goal setting for children

As winter draws in and Christmas approaches, it's a nice time to teach goal setting to small children. Our kids tend to have much shorter attention spans than adults, and to a small child a week can seem like a long time.

Small goals are great for small children - the idea is to get them to start setting some small, short term goals! Christmastime is a good opportunity to introduce children to goal setting and some of the things that go hand in hand with good goal practise.

For instance, you could:

• Enlist your kids' help in organising and sending out the family Christmas cards on time - introducing the idea of deadlines with regard to goal setting.
• Help your child plan, design and create a special hand made gift for someone special in his life - friend or relative. This introduces the joy of goal setting with the aim of doing something nice for another.
• Teach your child how to set a savings goal for something she wants to buy for Christmas - whether for herself or a loved one.

Happy holidays and have fun with your kids! :)
Cassie