Respect your child for what he is Posted By : Sudha Gupta
January 29th, 20106 year old Ankita doesn’t enjoy much the birthday parties of her age mates in the neighbourhood. She prefers staying at home reading her large collection of story books. Seeing other children sing, dance and have fun with each other, Ankita’s mother often expresses her concern about her daughter’s attitude. She often counsels Ankita telling her ‘Why can’t you be like other children?’
Yes, why is Ankita not like other children? Because each child is unique, different in personality. Some children think before speaking while some just seem to be always ready with answers. Some have a large group of friends and the friend circle of some is limited to one or two friends. Some talk easily with new people while some act reserved. Children have a natural preference for introversion or extroversion. And this is what makes all the difference in their approach and behaviour.
/>
Where extroverts get energy from outside by interacting with others, introverts get energized from their inner world of ideas and concepts. Introverts thus get easily drained in a party and extroverts are upbeat on the other hand. And this is the reason why introverts have few friends and extroverts have lots of friends.
There being a prominence of extroverts, extroversion is considered to be better. This is the reason parents constantly try to change their child. Whereas there is no such thing as good or bad personality .It’s a proven fact that introverts generally have higher IQ level than other children . Famous introverts vouch for it. Steven Spielberg, Albert Einstien, Bill Gates -all are introverts!
Therefore, there is nothing wrong by being an introvert. Introversion is a behavioural trait and not an abnormality. And you don’t have to blame yourself or condemn your child for having this kind of personality. Accept and respect your child for what he is. Only when you accept your child, you will stop focusing on how to change him and concentrate on his uniqueness. If you keep trying to make something else out of your child ,he will lose confidence and trust in himself. The pressure on him and confusion in his mind will mar his natural abilities.
You, as parents, should give ample opportunities to your child so that he can explore and develop his skills and talents. Once you understand and accept your child, it’ll help you to find out the means your child prefers to learn and communicate. Give him the atmosphere where he finds peace and comfort. Do guide but never push him.
Like if your child loves to read, take him to story telling or book reading sessions. Involve him in group activities of his choice where even if he doesn’t like the presence of a large group, he enjoys the activity. Acceptance and appreciation from you and the group will gradually make your child at ease.
Introversion can be genetic or even due to environmental reasons .But it’s how you react to the introversion of your child, which will make all the difference. So, stop brooding for your child not being as vivacious or vibrant as other children. Peep into his heart, love him unconditionally, encourage him without expectations and you may be on your way to become famous as parents of another Einstein.
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.