How to Use Business Skills to Help You Succeed as a Parent

 eWomenNetwork Spotlight: Sharon Ballantine's tips on getting your teens to talk to you

eWomenNetwork member, Sharon Ballantine, The Premier Parenting Coach, learned the hard way that parenting-by-demand wasn’t going to cut it. Faced with teenagers who grunted instead of speaking to her, she knew something had to change. Finally, an “aha” moment brought her to her senses that changed everything. Watch and learn how you can change your relationship with your child that can last a lifetime. After you watch the video or listen to the podcast, read Sharon Ballantine's article below on How to Use Business Skills to Succeed as a Parent.

Watch the video below or listen to the interview on the eWN Podcast Network. 

 

How to Use Business Skills to Help You Succeed as a Parent - by Sharon Ballantine

Raising the Happy Quotient at Home

Does it sometimes feel overwhelming and stressful to be managing your own business and also raising a teen or two? It can easily feel like you have two full time jobs! As a business owner and a parent, I have often felt like I needed to cultivate the “people” skills that I use in the world of business, on my own family. Skills such as attentive listening, non-judgment, the tone of voice I use, etc. At times, it was a struggle to use these skills at home if I was being reactive with my teens. 

As I was navigating the teen years, I wanted to be more responsive and less reactive to my teens and also have them be less reactive with me. Being reactive was standing in the way of good communication and undermining the quality of our relationship. I came to realize that if I truly wanted these things, I was going to have to slow down and take control of my own wellbeing, which meant making my happiness a priority. I knew that if I wasn’t happy, I couldn’t approach any situation with my teens in a clear way and be the supportive parent that I wanted to be. 

This also meant that allowing my teen’s moods and behavior to dictate my own mood and behavior would never serve me. I came to realize how crucial it was to also pay attention to what was truly going on within my teenagers, which seemed to often dictate their behavior. This took practice- on both counts and a constant reminder to myself- to not take things personally.

Getting along with your teen and raising the happiness quotient in your home, starts first with better understanding what is happening with them- in their minds and in their bodies. We know how stressed we can feel, but do we realize how stressed our teens are too? Are we giving them the benefit of the doubt as their find their way?

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