When you’ve worked so hard to become a successful leader, it only makes sense to want the same sense of satisfaction for your children. But what skills do your kids need to become great leaders? And how can you instill more of these qualities? To answer your questions, here are some of the most important skills and qualities your children need to become leaders, as well as the resources and support (like 4KidzSports) to help them develop each one.
Confidence and Humility
If you want your kids to grow into successful leaders, you need to work on building their self-esteem. These essential tips can help:
- Modeling confidence is one of the most effective ways that parents can shape a sense of self-worth and break cycles of low self-esteem.
- Taking risks helps kids face challenges and changes with confidence.
- Self-improvement, including pursuing an online master’s degree, can provide a self-esteem boost to parents who may be struggling and a good example to their kids.
- Choosing the right role models, like Ruth Bader Ginsburg, can also help children learn what it means to be a confident yet humble leader.
- Celebrating and praising differences can also lead to more confidence for children.
Compassion and Empathy
Leaders need a certain level of empathy and compassion in order to connect with others and make a positive difference in their community, so use these tips to teach kids how to care:
- Developing a sense of compassion is essential for leaders who also want to develop a sense of trust and caring within their teams.
- Parents can begin teaching compassion to their children at an early age by modeling empathy towards the feelings of others and connecting feelings to behaviors.
- During the COVID-19 crisis, parents can teach kids about compassion by having them send gifts to loved ones or help out with community causes.
- Reading about compassion can also foster more kindness and empathy in children.
Accountability and Honesty
Being able to admit to mistakes and take responsibility for decisions are also critical skills every leader should possess. Here are some ways to help your children be more responsible:
- Leaders who model responsibility and commitment tend to have an easier time gaining the trust of other people and promoting accountability from the top, down.
- Allowing kids to experience failure and to recognize that making mistakes is okay are both crucial to helping them develop honesty and accountability.
- Parents should learn how to react when their children make poor decisions.
Emotional Maturity and Awareness
Good leaders should also be aware of their emotions and be able to control them in even the most stressful situations. So use these resources to build emotional maturity in your kids:
- Self-regulation and self-awareness are both key elements of the type of emotional intelligence needed to be a successful leader.
- Parents should tailor their approach to emotional intelligence and self-awareness to fit the age and maturity level of their children.
- Naming emotions and offering feedback can also encourage children to develop emotional intelligence and self-awareness.
- Encouraging children to practice self-care, prioritize their mental health, and pursue the things they love can also help them stay in control of their emotions and reactions as adults. 4KidzSports has resources for kids who are interested in sports.
Truly great leaders aren’t born with the skills they need to thrive. They pick up these qualities and traits from the people around them, and the process begins with their parents. So if you have children of your own, make sure you have the tools needed to help them develop the right mix of confidence, humility, compassion, responsibility, and emotional intelligence.
Article by: Jenny Miller
jenny@stopndd.org
Photo Credit: Unsplash