We have to admit we never like starting an article with a negative – after all – we are all trying to do the best we can with the resources and knowledge that we have. It has never been our intention to shame parents or children into anything, so beginning with a title that’s all about our ‘mistakes as parents’ is somewhat conflicting for us.

That being said, in a recent article by Mark Leary, the author seeks to uncover some home truths from a family psychologist about what we could be doing (often unknowingly) that could be harming our kids. In the interest of learning a thing or two as parents ourselves, we gave it the benefit of the doubt and it’s a good read. To summarize the things that stood out for us – our top 10 are as follows:

– Giving kids too many choices (been there, done that!)
– Praising them for everything they do.
– Trying to make them happy.
– Overindulging them.
– Keeping them too busy.
– Thinking ‘smart’ will save them.
– Being hyper-critical of mistakes.
– Not limiting screen time.
– Not letting kids get bored.
– Not letting kids play dangerously.

Click here for the full article.