Are you building your family on a solid foundation? Do you and your children know and agree on the core values your family holds? These are some of the basic building blocks of a family that can be achieved wherever you are, whether you are starting your parenting journey or if you are in the home stretch raising teenagers.
Setting core values is a full family event – you cannot set them and let your family know what they are – you all have to develop and cultivate them. Think first about the values and character your family wants to reflect. What’s important to you? How would you like others to view your family?
Some of the core values we’ve established in my family are:
- Love one another
- Treat each other with courtesy and consideration
- Take care of each other
- Treat others with respect, patience, kindness, and goodness
There are a number of ways your family can model your values once they are established, and you can help keep them consistent. For instance, if you had the values above and your kids are bickering over a toy or a particular TV channel, you can remind them that one of your family’s core values is to love one another, and help them find their way back to that. If someone is under the weather, you can tuck that family member into bed with a blanket and a cup of tea because one of your family’s core values is to take care of each other.
You may (and will) have different core values than the ones I’ve established with my family. That’s good – these should be your family’s values. Maybe you are a creative family and one of your values is to see the beauty in everything. Perhaps financial stability is important to you and one of your core values is that your family doesn’t use credit cards. Charitable work may be important to your family and one of your core values may be that it’s better to give than to receive.
Establish the core values with your children’s input so they will have a sense of ownership to them and will be more motivated to follow the values your family has deemed as important.
For more information on how to stay consistent and true to your values in every phase of your parenting journey, please subscribe to my blog so I can keep you update about my upcoming book.
