We all make mistakes. But both parents and children become paralyzed with fear that they will make the same mistake twice. They pile themselves with guilt over their inability to get the simplest of things right.
This can happen with parenting issues and just everyday living for kids. We are all negotiating new skills and projects, new challenges and crisis. The fear of getting it wrong makes it worse.
A local college sent a group of young people and their professor to Rwanda to assist area pastors in reaching out to the poor and needy in their community. Faced with language and cultural barriers they experienced real trepidation. They decided right away to implement a version of Nike’s ‘Just Do It’.
Since they were going to make mistakes anyway, they decided to plan on at least five mistakes a day. That took the stress off the group and they were able to jump into challenging situations with the knowledge that they had a ‘quota’ of mistakes to fill!
This concept of allowing for five mistakes has been freeing for me. And I’m working to apply it to my parenting. Encouraging my adult children to make room for mistakes curbs my own expectations for them as well as their expectations for themselves. We feel a greater freedom to jump in and try things, rather than slowly trying to get everything ‘just right’.
Will you try to allow for making mistakes in your parenting? Join in with a StandUp Parenting parent group, face-to-face or online, to get the support you need to make these freeing changes in your life!
via Blogger http://standupparent.blogspot.com/2013/03/5-mistakes.html