Today we are wrapping up the last blog for my “mistakes parents make” series. We’ve covered expecting the worse, looking for parenting answers in others, making mountains out of molehills, and making molehills out of mountains.
Today is about imbalanced discipline. And I will tell you, that I am the queen of this. Yes, I fully admit that I don’t have this whole discipline thing down pat.
You would think after raising one child to adulthood, one just over two years away from that and another well on his way, I would be an expert. Okay, here’s the truth. No one is an expert in parenting.
Even when you’re done, you will find that things you believe about discipline are wrong. Or they at least won’t work for another family.
Discipline is, in my opinion, a very personal matter. How you discipline, the methods used and when it’s appropriate will greatly vary from one family to the next.
So while I won’t offer opinions (remember, I said I’m no expert), I will say this. A huge mistake that parents make (yes, pointing the finger back at myself) is being imbalanced in this area.
Although I don’t have the answers, I do know that with attention being brought to this issue, it helps me to redirect my focus. Perhaps it will do the same for you.
Ever feel after disciplining one of your children that it was too harsh? Question whether or not you went too far or the punishment didn’t really fit the crime? Here’s one thing I have learned in many of these instances…I reacted before thinking it through.
Or have you ever felt that it wasn’t enough? It doesn’t appear to be very impacting, so you wonder if you were too soft. In these situations, what I oftentimes find is that I’m too weary or too detached to make a wise decision. So I need to give myself space and time to think it through.
Notice a common theme? It’s thinking it through. This appears to be the best solution to balanced discipline.