Why Is It Important For Children To Be Independent? (Answered)

With the joy of parenthood, comes the utmost responsibility for your little bundle of joy to thrive in this harsh world. That is why one of the top priorities in raising our babies to adulthood is the criteria that they grow into self-reliant positive independent individuals. Be that as it may, why is it important for children to be independent?

Our role as parents is to teach our children how to survive and thrive in this world. As children mature into adulthood, they will be challenged with situations that test their mental fortitude, physical abilities and emotional capabilities. To give them the best chance of living a good life, it is paramount that we show them how to be independent thinkers who can take care of themselves.

Children who understand the importance of discipline tend to perform better than others.

In a world that is extremely competitive, we must do our best to give our children an upper hand to thrive from a young age.

It becomes essential for us as parents to do right by our children by this I mean knowing when to begin this learning process.

As our little angels grow into curious toddlers, it becomes crucially important to every parent to solely develop their learning abilities. It becomes necessary to teach them age-appropriate skills by giving them tasks that would be building blocks to their independence.

Reasons Why You Should Teach Your Children To Be Independent

Parents instinctively have nurturing and protective feelings towards their children but knowing when to let go and begin the process is the first step.

Raising children to be totally functional in society is absolutely necessary as children who are independent are equipped with academic and life skills that translate well into every facet of life.

1. Learning independence helps children become self-sufficient.
2. They are better equipped with social skills.
3. They relate better to other people.
4. They interact in groups successfully. This aids them in respecting others.
5. They would have great self-esteem. This would help them be self-reliant.
6. It would encourage leadership qualities.
7. Many children are less bored when they’ve occupied doing chores and tasks.
8. They would become fearless. It would encourage them to be comfortable and ask questions, this would help them explore better at home and school.

Life is so unpredictable.

I don’t want to be morbid at all but it’s a reality of life that death is guaranteed. As much as we would love to be alive forever to take care of our children, we don’t know how long we may have with them.

I’ve seen people pass in their early 30’s and 40’s suddenly, leaving behind kids that are barely into their teens.

God forbid, if that were to happen to us, we would want to leave this world knowing that our children have the necessary tools to get through this loss and to grow into adults who have a chance at living a wholesome, productive and happy life.

Teaching your child how to take care of themselves from an early age is one of the greatest gifts you can give them, other than your validation and support.

Knowledge and personal power are a lot more useful than money.

How To Empower Your Child

Know when to let go.

Sometimes, we as parents have the best of intentions but I must stress that this is often the cause when a child becomes least independent so parents out there, let go of those strings and take a plunge. After all its in your child’s best interest.

• Allow your child to do things for themselves.
• Compliment them when they complete a task.
• Reward them for their efforts. This will improve their confidence.

Start small and build them up.

Simple tasks like packing their own lunch for class or making their bed every morning sets a precedent that bleeds into other areas of life.

Here’s the kicker.

It’s not about what the things that you make your kids do.

Children who are empowered often emulate the behavior of their parents.

So, if you really want to empower your child, show them the way.

Lead by example.

This is why it’s so important for you to hold yourself to a higher standard.

Show your children the importance of doing what needs to be done in spite of how you feel, what you have to work with and the challenges you may face.

You need to read this article: What does it mean to live a healthy lifestyle?

The Best Benefits To Raising Independent Children

Children who have developed independent skills in their formative years grow up to be stronger individuals.

They are better equipped to handle their teenage years better as they don’t cave easily into peer pressure.

These children grow into developing vital qualities like excellent concentration with their schoolwork, are better at organizational skills, exercise better patience, have wonderful self-discipline and self-trust, better co-operation skills, they grow into trustworthy individuals, preserve at most work with enthusiasm, and they are accountable and reliable for themselves and their actions.

Best of all, you would notice that an independent child is a curious child and will constantly work towards motivating himself.

A child who grows with independence is a child that blossoms into a mature and positive individual.

Let’s face it, the world is a tough place and we as parents must do our utmost to ensure that our child is given these skills and opportunities to survive in this world by being self-reliant.

I was raised in a home that required me to be independant from a young age.

In fact, at the age of 17 which was many decades ago, I left home and moved to another city just to pursue a career in design. I lived with relatives and because I couldn’t afford to pay them money for rent, I took on the duty of cleaning the home, taking care of a newborn baby and so forth.

I would never have been able to make it on my own had my parents not taught me how to be independent from a young age.

How To Handle Rebellious Children

Often there are children who are extremely strong-willed.

These little ones are sometimes referred to as free spirits.

Some of them continue this resistance right into their teenage years. It can become an extremely trying time for parents who are faced with this challenge, not to forget dealing with children of this nature requires utmost patience.

It is often noticed that when parents are too busy occupied with their hectic lifestyles, like work, it can be easier to give in and shoulder all the responsibilities. This plays an active role in where children become co-dependent.

Firstly, parents don’t behave like their children and go to war.

Exercise utmost control and coax your child or teenager into being responsible for himself.

Allocate chores and responsibilities that would teach your child discipline.

Be sure to compliment and reward your child on completion of his or her duties.

This would build trust between you and your child. It would give the child a sense of satisfaction, thus improving his rebellious nature.

Giving your child allocated pocket money will also teach your child how to be thrifty, it builds responsibility for better choices and decision making. This would allow your child to respect the fact that you trust him or her to manage his own money.

Instill in your child the need to save with any extra pocket money.

Provide incentives when your child is reluctant to listen. For example, if he excels in an examination, gift him.

This could be a great morale booster.

Encourage an older rebellious child to watch other his younger sibling. It would help him not to grow self-centered knowing he has to watch over his younger sibling.

This is extremely empowering to a child.

This would teach a child that his or her parents have a lot to do and to respect them.

Final Thoughts

So, in a nutshell, being parents is an ongoing journey and the fruits of this labor are accomplished only when our children grow into physically and emotionally independent human beings who thrive in our world.

So, please let’s do right by our children and let’s teach them how to be independent.

Also, never forget to tell your children how proud you are of them.

Positive reinforcement is a great motivator for people of all ages.

With that being said, I hope you enjoyed this article why it is important for children to be independent.