Empower Your Child from Birth With the Language You Use in Your Home

You remember bath time for your infant. Soft towels, baby shampoo, and perfectly warm water alone make an unmistakable setting for a baby spa. With a newborn, bath time is as much a multi-sensory experience for the parent and siblings as it is for the baby. 

In your mind, what is the soundtrack that is playing in this scene? 

Cooing and smiles seem to be a requirement for both the bather and the bathed. Adults would only speak this way to an infant if it brought them rewards for this simple, uninhibited kind of conversation! However, such exchanges, and the genre of joy that they produce, naturally fade as the baby grows. 

Certainly, needs and interests change as both the older and younger grow. Where do the giver and receiver connect going forward? How can the effects of this innocent and joyful dialogue convert into similar validation and connectivity with your child as they grow?

The environment you contribute to with your language choices is critical to the development of your child and the joy in your home. The soundtrack of a child’s life experience contributes to the atmosphere of their lives. It can create one of safety which promotes learning and fulfillment, can build esteem and ability.

What environment do you create with your self-talk?

Your personal dialogue was created from the moment you were born. The words and purposes of people around you were what you “inherited.” As you matured, you became more capable of choosing what you would think and what you would say about and to yourself and others. 

It may be helpful to evaluate how your inner scripts make you feel about yourself.

How would you rate the quality of your personal self-talk?

Would you say that you are courteous and thoughtful when you speak to others in your home?

Fluency in courtesy and kindness, forgiveness, and understanding, begins within yourself. These mindsets invite growth. When you feel the effects of uplifting self-talk, you can recognize that need in people around you. 

With a little more effort than it took to coo at a baby, you could implement empowering language in your interactions with your children and set the stage for mutual respect. 

Here are some suggestions:

If you are a young parent with an infant, practice now by asking them questions even if they can’t answer. This tunes you to thinking about their needs and helping them identify and voice them as they growl. You can also complement your child and express understanding when they seem uncomfortable or upset. Afterall, if you saw someone who you weren’t related to struggling emotionally or physically, your inclination might be to relieve them in their struggle, even if you were tired and worn out.

Apply this same sensitivity to those in your home. Ask permission of your infant to apply lotion and set their clothes comfortably. Tell them it makes you happy to help them, and happy to see them do what they can for themselves.

Practicing language you want your child to be empowered with and to use later starts before they can even speak! They are highly intelligent and sensitive to feelings, and flourish in a nurturing environment.

What if your children are older?

I love the advice Glen I. Latham gave in his book The Power of Positive Parenting. Sincerely, specifically complement your pre-teen or teen, even your young adult child, and express appreciation for their abilities. 

Whether it is something as simple as their presence or as deep as recognizing their mental abilities, complementing sincerely and specifically speaks to their worth as an individual and eventually softens hearts.

What you do to create a positive soundtrack in your home will pay dividends into the future. 

How restful and revitalizing your living space can be is a reflection of what language you exemplify now, and later. It is worth your effort to begin today by making the next best small better choice in language today that will build a new, more effective atmosphere for a lifetime.

Let me know if I can help you with any particular communication difficulty you would like to improve!