No Pain, No Gain

You’ve probably heard the mantra “no pain, no gain” before. People usually say it when they’re talking about exercise. But you can apply that phrase to other things, too. Like raising successful kids.

“No pain, no gain” refers to discipline, sticking with something even when it hurts, and success seems impossible. Kids need a lot of discipline in order to take risks and to keep going when things don’t work out very well.

The trouble is we Americans have become quite safety-conscious in recent years. A little too much if you ask me. We’re obsessed with protecting our children from even the slightest possibility of danger. It’s hard to think of an outdoor activity that doesn’t require some kind of safety net, helmet, or knee pads.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m all for safety but protecting children from every conceivable risk is not a good idea. In fact, parents are often at their best when they don’t rush in to save the day. Mistakes are one of life’s most effective teaching tools. If you overprotect your children from failure, you’re depriving them of an opportunity to learn something that will move their lives in a good direction.

Soto help your kids grow into mature adults, remember: “no pain, no gain.”