Get Clear on Your Biggest Parenting Challenge in 3 Easy Steps

Ever feel so overwhelmed that you aren’t even sure exactly what you are overwhelmed about?  Yep, me too.  Parents are often stretched so thin and are so busy putting out fires that it’s hard to step back and clarify exactly “What is the problem?”  And, if you don’t have a clearly defined problem then it’s going to be almost impossible to create a solution.  Setting aside some time to identify the challenges and a proactive plan to solve them will save you time and so much frustration in the end.  I know it’s hard to carve out time as a busy parent so I’ve identified 3 steps so that you can maximize this time.  Write down your thoughts to each of these steps.  The act of writing in itself focuses your brain differently and will give you the best results.  So, how do you exactly structure that time efficiently so that you have a realistic problem-solving process?  

Grab a cup of coffee and pen and paper and let’s go.

Step 1:  Get Clarity on the Situation.  

This is about becoming very specific on what exactly is the problem.  “My kids are driving me crazy” isn’t going to cut it.  Think about what exactly the behavior is that is driving you crazy.  When does it occur?  How do you currently handle it?  When everything is vague we aren’t able to pinpoint what the problem is that we need to solve.  

Step 2: “Failing to plan is planning to fail.”  

I’m sure you have heard this before but if you know that a particular time of day is always a problem then make a plan.  If getting home from school or daycare is always chaotic then look at that time of day and break down the specific routines.  It might look like: take off your shoes, hang up your coat/backpack, get a snack, start homework, watch tv or have screen time.  Whatever it is, think about it ahead of time and what isn’t working.   Maybe you need to make sure you are more available at that time instead of trying to do laundry or make a call.  Maybe you need to create a visual schedule with each step that you can teach your child so that eventually they don’t need as much help.  Or, maybe you need to set the expectation that the tasks have to get done first before they can get on devices.  

Step 3: Tweak, Rinse, and Repeat.  

After establishing a plan it’s important to give it enough time before you start considering whether it’s “working’ or not.  Best practice is a minimum of 3 weeks of consistently implementing a plan is the minimum amount of time required before you can determine if you're getting results.  After that time, make changes if needed and keep going.  

Rome wasn’t built in a day and your parenting challenges also won’t be solved overnight.  Getting real that this is a process will level set your own expectations.  But, there is definitely hope and when you set an intention to figure this out, you will absolutely see results.  

What is your biggest parenting challenge?  Drop a comment below.