Tag Archives: consistency

Consistency is Key

“Life is hard enough for kids without having parents who are constantly changing the rules.” I wish I could remember which so-called parenting “expert” drove that bit of advice into my head. Regardless, it’s in there; squeezed in between the importance of providing a child with an established routine to alleviate any chaos, fostering a sense of security and checking underneath piles of mashed potatoes for hidden broccoli, carrots, peas or other items that kids would rather chuck than consume. When it comes to kids and consistency, it’s not just about setting and enforcing a decent bedtime, making sure teeth … Continue reading →

Bedtime With Baby

I go back and forth a lot on how to handle bedtime with our daughter. Up until this point, I’ve been very relaxed with our routine. If she seemed tired, I’d let her sleep. If she woke up and wasn’t happy being in bed, I’d take her out and hold her, feed her, or do whatever else it took to make her happy. In the last month, she settled into a routine by herself. She took naps about the same time each day and went to bed about the same time each night. However, things haven’t been so consistent lately. … Continue reading →

We Want Our Customers and Clients to Have Consistent Experiences

I wrote earlier today about ways to standardize our home business operations. My focus was on how it can make our own work days go smoother and keep us organized and relatively stress-free. Additionally, standardizing our home business operations can also contribute to our clients and customers experiencing consistency with us and consistency in a business operation can be a positive thing. Our customers and clients need to know what to expect from us–they have a right to expect a certain level of customer service, returned calls and e-mails in a reasonable time frame, etc. If we are all over … Continue reading →

Sometimes, the Answer is Just “No”

As you may imagine, with teenagers in the house, there is often a fair amount of “negotiation” around things. It becomes less about setting down firm rules and expecting obedience and more about finding a happy medium between authority and free reign. I think that is why it can be so shocking (and powerful) when I say “no” and mean it—no amount of negotiation is likely to change my mind. Recently, my son wanted to get a particular game for his Play Station and while I tend to be rather lenient about such things now that my kids are older, … Continue reading →

Consistency Doesn’t Always Go Both Ways

As parents, we have heard how important it is for us to be consistent with our children. Setting limits and establishing rules and then sticking to consistent reactions and consequences is what it is all about when it comes to solid parenting. If you are expecting that same consistent behavior from your child, however, you may have a long, long wait… With many children, consistency definitely does NOT go both ways…in fact, if your children are anything like mine—just when you think you have got their behaviors figured out and come up with a reasonable response, they change; just when … Continue reading →

Be Clear Before Taking Action

We single parents don’t usually have someone to bounce parenting ideas and suggestions off of, or someone handy to help us work through things to make sure we are seeing things clearly. I think this is one of the main reasons that single parents can sometimes seem inconsistent. We feel like we have to take some sort of action, and we do that before we are completely clear that we are looking at things from a reasonable perspective. This is why I think it is sometimes necessary for us to take a little extra time and make sure that we … Continue reading →

Consistency is Big For Single Parents Too

Consistency is one of those things that comes up again and again in parenting manuals and books—but the reality of life for a single parent can be that trying to set up schedules and remain consistent with reactions and discipline can be tough. Often, we find ourselves just reacting and trying to get through the day. I think it can be double important for single parents to focus on consistency—especially in important areas like rules, expectations and discipline. Let’s be honest—who among us hasn’t “given in” and let our child stay up later or eat cookies for breakfast just because … Continue reading →