Your Secret Weapon in Raising Cooperative Kids

Connection is your secret weapon in raising happy, cooperative kids.

It's the glue that holds families together, that binds us over the years and across the miles, that gets us through the hard times. If you're working so hard you can't relax and take delight in your kids, you're missing out on the grease that smooths the rough interactions of everyday life -- and the honey that makes it all worth it.

Children NEED to feel a solid bond with parents who delight in them, just like they need food. That bond is what allows kids to learn so quickly, to risk bumps, scrapes and hurt feelings -- the security of knowing that someone who adores them is watching out for them. Kids naturally want to please those who love them, and when they don't feel a strong adoring adult presence in their lives, they don't behave.

And if we don't cement a close connection before our kids are twelve, they turn elsewhere to bond. It's not too late after that -- and connecting is still critical -- but it's a lot harder to get teens to let us in.

That’s why all parents need to reconnect with their children daily, just to repair the erosion created by life’s normal distractions. When you recollect your child physically into your orbit, focus on recollecting them emotionally as well. Effective parenting is almost impossible until the positive connection with your child has been re-established, so think of this as preventive maintenance, before there’s a problem.

Here's how:

1. Remember that quality time is about connection, so it’s mostly unstructured. Forget about teaching. Just be fully present with your child. Relax, reflect, play, love. Think of quality time as your kid's time, and follow his or her lead......(Click to Keep reading)