Positive Mental Attitudes of Parents

Confidence and Self-esteem

• Children raised in positive environments will have more opportunities to develop confidence and higher self-esteem. Their parents believe in them and their abilities and strive to provide them with the support and examples they need. Positive-minded parents are confident in themselves and their own skills, and remain calm and focused during stressful times. This will provide the child with the inspiration she needs to become the same type of individual -- secure in herself and her abilities. In an article titled "Why Positive Parenting?" psychologist Laura Markham, writing at AhaParenting.com, states that through positive parenting "Kids reap the rewards of good behavior -- good grades, self-esteem, approval from peers -- and it begins to come naturally. It becomes part of their self-image, and they automatically act to preserve that self-image."

Motivation and Initiative

• Children with positive parents are more likely to be motivated to do well in their personal lives and academic environments. Being able to self-direct themselves toward goals and aspirations will give them the drive that will push them to excellence and productivity. Positive parenting increases children's chances of learning how to take the initiative to take on challenges and reach objectives without coddling or parents taking on the tasks themselves. Markham said she believes that love, not physical discipline or force, "becomes a more effective motivator over time."

Optimism

• A child raised by a parent with a positive attitude is apt to become an optimist. She will be empathic and an inspiration to other children. According to Martin E. P. Seligman, author of "The Optimistic Child," raising children "is about identifying and amplifying their strengths and virtues and helping them find the niche where they can live these positive traits to the fullest."

Independence

• A parent's goal is to produce well-adjusted, independent offspring. Positive parenting encourages children to learn how to do activities on their own. Mistakes and failures become opportunities to develop a stronger character and learn new skills. Positive parents encourage their offspring to try again when first attempts fail. Their children will learn to seek the good or the lesson in a difficult event or disappointing outcome. In her book, "The Parenting Breakthrough," author Merrilee Browne Boyack states that parents who do everything for their children do them a disservice. They send the message that they are not good enough, smart enough or trustworthy to take on the tasks themselves.