by Shadesdown

Created on: April 17, 2008   Last Updated: December 06, 2010

There is a big difference between encouraging and pressuring a child.

1. (Encouraging)

Children of all ages need all the encouragement they can get from their loved ones especially their parents/guardians. Many children dream at very early ages of becoming singers, dancers, actors, and other things in the entertainment business that are accepting at an early age. Those children need, want and most of the time, thrive on encouragement from their loved ones. At that early stage of their adolescent lives, regardless if you know they will not fit the bill of that dream, should be encouraged because it helps build up their self esteem and it allows that child to develop more dreams and ambitions throughout their childhood well into their adulthood. Denying your child to attempt to live their dreams breaks down their self esteem and keeps them from continuing to dream for bigger and better things in their lives.

Being there as much as possible for that child is another big part of encouragement. If that child gets an opportunity to sing on a stage and their parent is unable to attend, could create a huge dent in their self esteem and could possibly result in that child giving up on their hopes of becoming what they want in life. All they want to hear is a simple, "You were beautiful up there." "You did a great job." "You did your best and that's all that matters." Never discourage a child to keep going. Always let them know, there is something out there for everyone and theirs is just around the corner. And allow that child to move at their own speed at living or pursuing their own dreams.

2. (Pressuring)

Many parents seem to use their child(ren) as a way to live their own dreams, whether they were successful or not. Stage parents are a good example to say are most likely the ones who think they are encouraging their child but to everyone else, they are pressuring their child into doing something they don't want to.

Many children who are pressured into doing something they don't want to do, begin to feel unheard and unable to dream their own dreams because their parents are busy making all the decisions for them. Pressuring a child as such keeps him or her from developing and grow into themselves. Pressuring a child could also cause a boundary in an otherwise close relationship between parent and child.

Always encourage your child to live out their dreams and never pressure them into doing your dreams.

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