Taking on something new!
What a great idea! Here I refer to stepping out of your comfort zones and into a whole new field. How often do we do this in our busy routine world? I imagine not too often given the demands on our weeks and the expectations placed on us in so many ways. Who wants to put themselves through such an ordeal?
Research tells us that we create new pathways in our brain by stretching our thinking processes into completely new areas. How good is this for our children! Of course, routine is so important and children need repetition and opportunities to reinforce so much of what they do and learn.
This article is to enlighten us to the fact that as parents we need to demonstrate to our children that reaching out and trying new and different experiences is a way of life. It fuels our appetite for change and ignites our interest in a broader world.
As we age, it is comfortable to keep on with what we know and enjoy in our life. Familiarity is certainly predictable. While this has its place, I would also suggest taking a few risks and demonstrating to your child, that risk-taking and seeking out new ways of being and doing are very rewarding.
Consider the following thoughts on how to encourage your child to be hungry for new and different ways of being.
Stepping outside of ‘your’ comfort zone is great for your kids.
Remember that you are the significant model in this situation. If you demonstrate to your child that you enjoy trying on new ideas in your life, this will have a major impact on your child.
Talk positively about taking a few risks, trying on new ideas and talk about situations where risk-taking changed your thinking.
When you notice your child steering away from the regular routine way of doing things, then affirm their efforts.
“Well done. I just noticed that you chose a different way of working out that sum. That shows initiative.”
“I really like the way you tried to put your Lego together. Trying new ways can lead to different shapes.”
“I love the new outfit you are wearing. It has a different look from your regular clothes.”
When working through a problem with your child suggest brainstorming many and varied ways of handling the matter. Here you can encourage new ways of looking at a problem.
When you take on a new direction, talk to your child about what is new and different about this step and why you chose to try it.
“I think tomorrow, I will try a new route to go to work. The traffic is just too heavy at the moment”
Be bold and specific in making suggestions to the family that take them out of their comfort zones.
“Tonight, let’s eat Japanese. We have never had it before and it can be quite a surprise.”
Show your child that you value attempting new and different experiences and that you include them in this process.
With taking on something new it also helps cope with fear of failure.
“I am starting to learn Italian. It may take some time and practice as I will make mistakes along the way.”
Talking about failure as a normal part of trying new experiences places failure in a normal position in the learning process. It tells the child that when you try new experiences that take you out of your comfort zones, failure will be a natural part of the journey to improvement.
This article is about setting up a climate in the family where new experiences are seen as a positive. Also researching new ways of being and doing are encouraged as with some degree of failure built into the process.
Our children look to us for a framework of how to live and what to value. As they grow and embrace their own ideas, we want them to challenge themselves with new ideas knowing that their base, the family, values this initiative as a way of life.
“Never be afraid to
Try something new,
Because life gets
Boring when you stay
Within the
Limits of what you
Already know.”