Children have so much to learn while they’re growing up. They build communication, relationship and educational skills in real-time, so other skills like productivity might get left behind. Learning how to make your child successful in life is a daily process, but you can always start prioritizing productivity to help them thrive.
Read the benefit of prioritizing productivity skills while your child is young to better understand why they’re so helpful.
When your child knows how to manage their responsibilities and well-being, they’ll have the confidence to handle anything. You may even become more effective at time management along the way.
1. They’ll Learn About Consequences
Parents want their kids to feel safe and happy. It often means extending grace when your child struggles with something, but they must learn about consequences eventually. Their reaction helps them build problem-solving skills.
Picture your child wanting to meet their friends at the neighborhood pool. They have to do the chores they’ve been putting off before they can go. Your child means well but procrastinates and finishes their chores a few days late. By then, the community pool managers have closed their business for the summer.
Your kids will need to weigh their to-do list with relevant time-bound consequences before taking on more impactful responsibilities like paying bills. Starting this learning experience in childhood lets them experience the outcomes of their actions in a safe environment.
Consider following these recommended steps to introduce consequences in a way that balances discipline with love:
- Identify their poor behavior or decision
- Warn them how the outcome will happen again in the future
- Reflect on why the consequence makes them unhappy
- Remind your child they have the power to make better choices next time
2. They’ll Value Their Routines
Kids follow the daily structures set for them by their parents and teachers. They don’t have much choice in certain routines, which might cause your child not to think about them as helpful patterns.
Routines are crucial for maximizing productivity because they demonstrate time management. Teach your child to value them now by walking them through the benefits of something like their sleep routine.
If your preschooler goes to bed at 8 p.m., point out the time when they get sleepy. Show them how to follow the clock to care for themselves later on. Sleep routines support regular sleep patterns like REM cycles by ensuring your child’s brain gets enough rest to reset.
Reinforcing the importance of going to bed on time will make your child successful in life. They’ll get in touch with how their bodies work and support themselves efficiently. They’ll also feel empowered to control their routine based on what they know about themselves through their human design chart, therapy or years of experience.
3. They’ll Start Juggling Responsibilities
Consider giving your child an age-appropriate to-do list. Show them what they need to do before bedtime and teach them how to divide the remaining hours of the day. They could put their toys away after dinner, do the breakfast dishes or make their bed before school.
As your kids practice, they’ll get less stressed about being responsible for more than one or two things at a time. They’ll have an easier time keeping track of homework for college classes or responsibilities in their future workplace. It’s one of the ways parents learn how to teach time management to children because a simple chore list is possible for kids at most ages.
4. They’ll Get Familiar With Calendars
Give your child their own calendar, even if they’re young. They could put stickers by the chores they got done for each day and record one thing they did for fun. It depends on their age and routine.
Your kids will need to use calendars for their future education and careers. Showing them how to use a calendar to organize their responsibilities and track what they accomplished makes them more of a pro at time management. They’ll always have one as they grow up, ensuring they stay ahead of deadlines and become more self-efficient.
5. They’ll Face Their Frustrations Effectively
Research shows that kids develop emotional regulation patterns more effectively when their parents walk them through their feelings. This helps them be productive too.
When young kids get frustrated, they might have a meltdown. Their brains don’t know how to handle intense emotions yet. Let your child express their feelings, then discuss why their age-appropriate responsibilities resulted in their frustrations.
They might say they’re upset with themselves for not finishing their daily chores on time. You can explain how that’s something everyone feels, but their negative thoughts don’t make them a bad kid. As you work through their feelings together, they’ll learn how to process emotions and see frustrations as learning opportunities. Bouncing back from challenges means their productivity will help them succeed later in life.
6. They’ll Want to Be Like You
Kids want to be like their parents. You’re their role model and hero, so they’ll follow in your footsteps if you model time management. Prioritize productivity in your own life so they learn by example.
You could point out how you use your calendar to track your family’s responsibilities. Mention why a productivity setback frustrates you and how you’ll learn from it. You’ll know how to teach time management to your child because you already utilize these skills daily. Quick teaching moments could be the most effective way to raise productive kids if they’re already recreating the behaviors you model.
7. They’ll Value a Healthy Balance
Optimal productivity always involves balancing your time. You have to take care of your mental and physical wellness to maintain a healthy, productive speed. Teach your child to do the same so they stay in touch with their needs while working through their future to-do lists.
Set aside time to reflect on your child’s feelings together. If they feel too tired to complete their work, show them how to shift things around to still get things done without risking burnout. When they have more energy, ask how their routine helped them reserve that energy. They could use it to get ahead of their to-do list or do something for fun.
Using these opportunities to demonstrate the ease and importance of self-care is crucial. When your child is mindful of their body’s needs, they’ll build lifelong self-care habits like reading a book or releasing pent-up energy through hobbies. They’ll use these skills to prevent burnout as productive adults and have a happier quality of life.
8. They’ll Become Better at Waiting
Some responsibilities can’t happen right away. The delay could result in your child feeling impatient, upset or stressed. These lingering problems can decrease a person’s concentration, worsening their overall productivity.
Show your child how to become better at waiting by practicing time management with them. A to-do list or a calendar could become their next favorite productivity tool. As they become patient by breaking down more significant tasks and working with deadlines, they’ll have more patience to put into their relationships, schools and workplaces.
Make Your Child Successful in Life
Teaching time management to your child will set them up for success. Show them how prioritizing productivity and their overall wellness helps them thrive. Starting at home with habit adjustments, new routines and helpful conversations will start the process even when they’re young.