Reflective Listening

Frustrated by your child's combative response to your requests? Instead of lashing out at your child, try to understand the underlying emotions behind your child's behavior. Ask questions to understand where your child is coming from.

Sometimes great parenting requires you to stop and assess the situation before you react. Check out this great article on Reflective Listening to help you handle a rebellious child. Here's a summary:

Four steps to listening to your child to change unwanted behaviors:

Detect - Figure out underlying emotions.

Empathize - Empathize with your child.

Ask - Ask questions.

Reflect - Paraphrase what you hear from your child.

It's something all parents can do.