5 WAYS TO TOUGHEN UP YOUR KIDS

1 ENCOURAGE questions. It is thought that children ask the most questions when they are just four years old.

Unencumbered by anxiety and filled with curiosity, young children are unafraid to ask questions in order to learn about the world around them.

As they get older they worry more about whether their question is a stupid one, and begin to take for granted the way the world works. But if they continue to be curious, if we encourage them to keep asking questions in their teens and 20s, they are more likely to find ways of shaping their world so it works better for them.

2 TALK about change. Covid has forced us to change the way we live, communicate and interact. But this is unlikely to be the first change a child has faced, and it is even less likely that it will be the last.

As children navigate their way through changing schools, exams, not to mention human relationships, occasionally bring up the changes that are coming. And remind them of how they overcame challenges (no matter how small) they faced in the past.

3 APPRECIATE your differences. If everyone thought in the same way and experienced the same things, our ability to come up with new ideas would be seriously compromised. The things that make us different are exactly what enable us to contribute something unique.

Encourage children to consider the ways they can offer something extraordinary by virtue of the fact that there is no one quite like them.

4 CELEBRATE failure. We can be fairly certain that things won’t go to plan all the time, so coping with bumps in the road, failures along the way, is going to be an inevitable part of life.

To reduce anxiety about failure, reframe it as an opportunity to understand what you need to do differently next time. There is always another chance, there is always a different path.

5 BE KIND. Research by the University of British Columbia suggests that being kind can help to reduce anxiety and increase confidence.

Encourage acts of kindness, no matter how small. It helps to build trust with those around you, who feel that they can count on you. And in return, you can count on them for help when you might need it.