Ways to Teach Your Children a Great Work Ethic

Ways to Teach Your Children a Great Work Ethic

The principle that hard work is intrinsically virtuous or worthy of reward…. is WORK ETHIC.

Why is it  IMPORTANT TO HAVE  A GOOD WORK ETHIC ?                        
Your good work ethic tells, in future what people might expect from you ...Good attendance and punctuality are two important pieces of a good work ethic –and they're easily addressed and accomplished.. 

IS IT A SKILL?
Good work ethic, problem solving, time management, communication skills and team  work ability are all skills that can make you a great student/ employee.   Leadership skills make you a candidate to be more than that.

Here are the few ways for the Parents to teach your children a great work ethic:                         
Just as it’s not enough to tell your slacker co-worker to work harder, it’s not enough just to tell a child about the importance of a good work ethic. No, the teaching of a good work ethic begins with good boundaries and a little one-on-one assistance. Parents play a large role in shaping their child’s home and academic work ethic through interaction and support. By knowing how to change your expectations toward your child, you show your child how to change his outlook toward work.      
                                                                         
1.Understand the fact that you always teach, regardless of intention: The question    when it comes to teaching at home is not “if?” but “what?” It’s important to understand that home is a natural and continuous learning environment. Everything we do instructs our children – so the question is always “What am I teaching?” and “How can teach the right lessons?"                                                                              Start Early…Lay the groundwork early. When our three-year-olds beg to peel carrots, or    our four-year-olds plead to sweep the floor, our tendency is to say they’re not ready. But teach them when they’re eager and they’ll be more likely to step up to the plate later on. 

2. Example, example, example: If parents own a positive work ethic, then we’re already halfway there. This is a great opportunity for “do as I do” supporting “do as I say.”  Be a Role Model…So much of who our children turn out to be is a reflection not of what we try to pour into them but of what they see in us. It’s not the big occasions our kids will remember most, but the everyday stuff that revealed what their parents were really made     of – how we handled frustration, whether we were on time and kept commitments, whether we did our own work with a smile or a frown.

Know Your Children…..There’s a difference between a 5-year-old who doesn’t know that plates have backs and a   10-year-old who neglects to wash them because he’s in a hurry to play. One needs teaching, the other needs accountability.
Parents also need to know how to motivate each child. Young children are often motivated   by verbal praise. Older children may need more: money or privileges. 

3. Balance is job one: Every family has their own take on how much is too much. But it’s essential that we teach our children balance in terms of work. Deliberately teach them that family time is the priority. A work ethic that sacrifices family turns out to be all work and      no ethic.     
                                                                            4. Keep family priorities in order: The simple, “fun after the work is done” associates relaxation with completion rather than relaxation as escape. Kids experience more satisfaction in their leisure when it is paired with satisfactory job performance.

5. Work with your children whenever possible:
Question: how is a “guide” different     from a “boss”?
Answer: a boss typically barks out orders and waits for results – whereas a guide is willing to walk alongside. As dads, teaching a work ethic, our role is that of guide.

If your child wants to rake leaves, be ready to knock on doors with him. If she wants to walk dogs, help her place an ad in the paper. Be ready and willing to help your child start    working, and you’ll be amazed at the life lessons she’ll learn.

6. Take your children with you when you volunteer: Pick up garbage together on the    side of the street; join a team that fixes things at the park; hook up with volunteer efforts at church or other community groups. Work associated with service is a key building block to the value of work across the board.    
                                                                            7. Expose them to stories about heroes who learned the value of work: There are hundreds of great stories to reinforce this point. Movies, books, articles. Read them together and then live them, day by day.

8. Make chores at home a shared responsibility: Every member of the family should     have assigned chores on a routine basis. Change them around; help each other out; take   turns with the ones no one really enjoys. Doesn’t   wimp out on the chores, and don’t let your kids wimp out either. Accept What You Get. When faced with less-than-perfect results, graciously praise the   effort. For example, when seven-year-old son surprised the family by cleaning the windows, her mom ignored the smudges and smears. “What hard work!” she said simply, “I love to clean windows too. Next time let’s do it together!”      
                                                                           9. Reward your child for productivity.
Give praise or small gifts to your child when he’s made improvements in his work ethic. Remember to ignore the guilt that naturally comes in the form of the question, “Am I bribing my child?” In fact, these are expressions of pride in him . So go ahead and push your child forward via praise, hugging and the occasional small gift. Paying children to participate in family life sends the wrong message. Work in the family is an intrinsic value and is fundamentally worthwhile. Compliment; encourage; throw in the occasional treat. “Because you- kids, it has been so amazingly responsible week!”… Admire their good work, but don’t re-assign the value of expected work to the false value of cash.   

10. Have a “chore chart” on the refrigerator:  And feel free to use.

11. Establish limits: Create boundaries that will push your child away from distractions    and toward his work. For example, a child who watches television while he eats his after school snack , might lack the willpower to turn off the television after one show. In his mind, he likely knows he has homework to do but thinks, “Just one more show, and then I’ll get started.” The “one more show” might then turn into three more shows, keeping him from getting started on his homework until an hour before dinnertime. Set a limit on problematic behavior like this, such as by restricting television after 4 p.m. Follow up on limits. Explain the reason the limits are in place, emphasizing the importance of chores and academics over playtime or other distractions. Avoid using the timeworn “because I say so” reasoning, which only tells children something they already know: You’re the one that sets the rules.

Instead, express the importance behind setting the limitation. Further emphasize this importance by explicitly stating the consequence of breaking the limit. Engage in this discussion either when you first set the limit or the first time your child breaks the limit thereby giving him a second chance with an added  explanation such as, “I said no TV after 4 p.m. because school is more important than TV.
    
I’m disappointed that you broke this rule, and if it happens again, I’ll just unplug the TV. 

Teach Delayed Gratification Establishing a pattern: we work, and then we play. You might say to your child, “I know you want to play outside. Let’s pick up all these blocks and fold the clothes and then we can go together.”  Or, “Let’s get the house cleaned up and then we’ll make some popcorn and      watch a movie.”

12. Help your child with his chores and homework, but don’t do them for him. Show him the importance of planning before jumping into a room-cleaning project or study  session haphazardly. Doing so shows him not only the importance of time management but also of organization in planning and studying. For example, if your child doesn't know where to   start with cleaning his room, help him devise a plan of action, listing in order the areas   that should be cleaned and how to clean them. Likewise, if your child is studying for next week’s test, help him devise a study plan. Outline the areas of the text on which he’ll be tested and create a schedule with learning goals attached. Your goal should be to perform this activity with him to help him complete his academic tasks on his own, thereby relieving yourself of your job as his study planner.

First teach them to pick up their clothes, to crush the cans for recycling, or to vacuum out     the car. We need to give them extra time to make them do something when we could have  done it faster and better ourselves.

It’s the real life test of our everyday efforts to raise children with a work ethic.
Believe me, it is not easy.

Dr. Ruth Peters, a psychology contributor to NBC’s Today show and author says: “Daily in     my practice I see parents who have made the mistake of not taking the time and attention to teach their children to be workers and achievers. These kids have learned to settle for less rather than to face and challenge adversity, to become whiners rather than creative problem solvers, and to blame others for perceived slights and lack of success.”

The ability to work hard, to tolerate frustration, and to take responsibility doesn’t just happen without a push from parents. 

Like all good things, building a strong work ethic in your child takes constant effort. But  you’ll know it’s worth it when your child comes home from the first day of his first job  looking   tired and satisfied and grown-up and says something like :
“My boss said I did a good job, Mom. Thanks for everything.”