Shake Off Responsibility From Your Shoulders

Parenting is hard. There is always a lot to do and a lot to consider. This is the reality of parenting, and it often feels like the more parenting we do, the better parent we are.

?Imagine parent as martyr:

?The overworked individual, starting early in the morning and going until late at night, preparing things, carrying things, doing things for their child, or worrying about the child when they’re not around.

?This is an easy character to imagine and many of us have likely played that role from time to time in our lives. There are times when this really needs to happen. When we bring home infants, they are completely dependent on us, and we do care for them around the clock. When our kids are sick, we may need to fall into this role again to ensure their health and safety.

What is just as important is that we step out of this role as soon as we can do so.

?That’s right, you heard me,

?“We need to be consciously shaking some responsibility from our shoulders.”

?Here’s why:

?Children believe that adults know everything. When we tell them something, or show it to them, they believe it to be true. When we do things for them that they don’t really need us to do for them, they believe that they can’t do it for themselves. They often won’t even try to do it on their own because they just don’t think that they can.

Whether your child is 2 or 22, there may be things you are doing for them that they would benefit from learning how to do for themselves, (or even for the family.) When you consciously choose to teach your child how to manage a task on their own, you are also relieving yourself of that responsibility. Suddenly, your shoulders feel a little bit lighter, and your child’s smile gets just a little bit bigger because they are contributing to the family and helping you.

What will you hand over to someone else in the family? Let’s take some advice from Taylor Swift, and “Shake It Off!”