Every parent wants their child to be happy.
But perhaps an even greater gift is helping children develop the skills to navigate life when they’re not happy. When they’re disappointed, afraid, struggling with friendships, facing change, doubting themselves, or dealing with something that simply feels hard.
That’s resilience.
And in recognition of World Mental Health Day on October 10, we’re highlighting an important conversation about how those skills can be developed while children are still young.
Adventures in Wisdom® founder Renaye Thornborrow recently joined Sara Bradford, host of The SJ Childs Show, for a conversation about life coaching for kids, mindset development, and helping children become more confident and prepared for the ups and downs of growing up.
Their conversation raises an important question:
What if supporting children’s mental health isn’t only about helping them when they’re struggling, but also about proactively giving them skills that can help prepare them for those struggles in the first place?
That’s at the heart of life coaching for kids.
Building the skills children can draw upon later
Throughout the conversation, Renaye and Sara explore the importance of helping children develop skills such as confidence, self-esteem, positive self-talk, decision-making, self-responsibility, and resilience.
As Renaye explains, “These skills help provide this foundation. And it’s just so empowering for children when they really learn that, ‘Wow, how I think about something is going to impact not only how I feel about what’s going on, but how I feel about myself too.’”
One of the most powerful places to start is self-talk, whic is the ongoing conversation children have with themselves about who they are, what they’re capable of, and what life’s experiences mean. Renaye explains, “Every moment of every day we’re saying something to ourselves. It’s either building us up or it’s tearing us down.”
Renaye encourages parents to listen closely to the language their children use because it can provide a window into how they’re experiencing themselves and their world.
Resilience doesn’t mean protecting children from everything
Renaye and Sara also explore an important, and sometimes difficult, part of raising resilient children: giving them opportunities to experience challenges.
Rather than removing every obstacle, children need age-appropriate opportunities to stretch outside their comfort zones, make decisions, make mistakes, and discover that they can handle hard things.
Renaye says, “It’s okay for them to fall down, it’s okay for them to be scared about something.”
And Sara connects this to one of the ultimate goals of parenting, “You want them to be able to be independent and to be able to leave and be able to go.”
Those skills don’t suddenly appear when children become adults. They’re developed through experiences, conversations, and practice along the way, all throughout childhood.
What if we didn’t wait until children were struggling?
Parents often look for resources when they see their child struggling with confidence, friendships, change, fear, self-esteem, or other challenges. But Renaye reminds us that we don’t have to wait for something to go wrong. Renaye shares, “The right time is any time because the child’s struggling or not, these skills help provide this foundation.”
And perhaps that’s an important message for World Mental Health Day, We can’t prevent every challenge our children will face. But we can help them build skills for navigating those challenges when they come.
Watch or Listen to the Interview on the SJ Childs Podcast
There is much more to Renaye and Sara’s conversation, from the power of storytelling and self-talk to decision-making, independence, parenting, and practical ways to help children develop their mindset.
Rather than giving it all away here, we invite you to watch or listen to the conversation for yourself.
Listen to Episode 371 of The SJ Childs Show with Renaye Thornborrow and discover how life coaching and mindset skills can help children build confidence and resilience for the ups and downs of growing up.
Self-esteem, self-confidence, good decision making, resilience, and goal setting are all mindset skills that kids can learn for life.
Adventures in Wisdom is leading a worldwide movement to bring mindset skills, personal development and life coaching to kids. Since 2013, we’ve certified hundreds of coaches in over 30 countries.
Kids learn 27 mindset skills – by either working with a certified child life coach (WISDOM Coach) or working with their parent in a home study course.
Learn everything you need to know about Life Coaching for Kids here.
1. Want to be a Life Coach for Kids?
You can create impact and income – working part time or full time – as a certified WISDOM Coach®.
You can get certified to use the Adventures in Wisdom Life Coaching for Kids Curriculum, where you’ll use fun coaching stories, activities and a proven STORY Coaching process to teach mindset skills and life coach kids.
WISDOM Coaches use coaching stories and activities to help children develop mindset skills for confidence, resilience, self-esteem, self-leadership, and achievement so that they can be confident and prepared to handle the ups and downs of growing up, reach their fullest potential, and thrive.
To see what it’s all about and learn how you can create a business you love as a life coach for kids, simply click below. You’ll find everything you need to know, including how to apply and save.
2. Want to Find a WISDOM Coach for Your Child?
Simple click below to:
- Use the “Connect with a Coach” form or
- Search the WISDOM Coach® Directory
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