Optimism and positive thinking are a life attitude that creates positive emotions but is also directly related to good health and, by extension. to a happy life. The foundations for creating a positive way of understanding life must be established from a very young age. For this reason, parents and their way of life play a key role. As children imitate what they see in their environment, parents’ optimistic attitude towards all life situations is something they will copy and implement without the need for any “teaching” on their part.
· The most important thing is to use positively charged words and avoid negative ones. As much as possible, let us not use the words “no,” “don’t” in our daily vocabulary, but try to formulate our sentences, giving them a positive tone. Phrases like, “Maybe you were tired today. You can try again” provide an optimistic perspective and dynamics for the children to continue their effort.
· It is good to teach our children to focus on their successes. We can also praise their accomplishments and the efforts they make regardless of whether their result will be positive or negative. At the same time, we encourage them to try to strengthen and improve their weakest points. In this way, we boost their confidence and self-esteem, and they become more optimistic.
· It is crucial in every negative event that happens to identify the positive elements and opportunities that can arise. Thus, we encourage them to look for the positive impact of every situation in their lives.
· When specific difficulties arise, such as a bad family situation, a dismissal, a death, etc., we try to deal with them calmly and present to children their positive aspects. For example, if one parent gets fired, we can say that now they can spend more time together doing the things they like.
· It is good to avoid using negative “labels” for the characterization of our children. When we continuously call our child “shy,” “lively,” “chubby,” it is most likely in a short time and without understanding it, to adopt the identity or manifest the behavior described by this “label.” What we can do is motivate them to display the opposite positive behavior.
· If our children are faced with a failure at school or in some extracurricular activity and are disappointed, it is good to ask them questions that will lead them to the cause of the problem without criticizing them. That will help them find the solution on their own and deal with the situation the next time they need it. We can encourage them not to cling to this failure but to move on with phrases like “Next time you will do much better.”
· We encourage children to engage in activities they like to feel capable and confident, and empowered. Otherwise, if they are not interested in their activities, they are more likely to fail, resulting in feelings of frustration and indifference.
It is generally good to recognize, express, and above all, to live in fullness our positive feelings, such as joy or enthusiasm, indirectly encouraging our children to do the same. No matter what happens, we remember to smile, filling with joy and optimism all the world that surrounds us. Let us learn to live in the present and enjoy every moment so that our children can learn to do the same in their lives. Let us adopt a positive vocabulary and a positive attitude of life, because only in this way will we attract positive situations in our lives, and beautiful things will happen.
