Studies show children who feel a strong emotional bond with their parents are far less likely to disobey or disappoint their parents for fear of breaking or hurting that emotional connection. If you bond with your children from the moment they’re born and maintain that close relationship you’ll have the advantage of eventually being able to guide your child effectively, even through those difficult adolescent years!
I’ve naturally created a strong emotional bond with my kids since the day they were born! I accomplished this by talking to them, singing to them, holding them lovingly in my arms, being playful with them, and most importantly, by sincerely telling them “I love you” all the time.
With our lifestyles today, spending quality family time has become increasingly difficult. For many of us, because of our work schedules, it takes much sacrifice to put ourselves in a position to bond with our children. But I assure you, no matter what situation you’re in, you can eventually dedicate an ideal amount of time to your kids.
I’ll give you a great example of how I sacrificed my professional life to devote more time to my children; in March of 2008 after 7 years of being employed part-time by Major League Baseball as one of 12 Field Observers across the country, I decided to retire so I could spend more quality time with my family. Yes, I lost a lot of money, not to mention a prestigious position, and it put us in a financial strain at times, but my family and I have never been happier.
During this last year, I’ve also cut back drastically on working extra hours in my main career, and I’ve started this blog and two others, all so I could stay home and be with my family. I literally let go thousands of dollars (somewhere in the 20,000 to 25,000 range)! Of course there are many luxuries we can’t afford like we used to, and we need to keep a much closer eye on our finances, but we’ve done it! And I can tell you this; the emotional bond everyone has in this household with each other is absolutely unbreakable!
I believe each and every one of us has the opportunity and a choice of whether or not we want to make sacrifices to be with our families. If you’re a business owner, maybe you can cut back on hours spent at work by giving another responsible employee extra hours, or you can hire someone else to do some of the work. If you’re out in the work force, maybe you can turn down overtime sometimes and stress to your employer you enjoy spending time at home with your family. They’ll soon get the picture and eventually lean on someone else!
You may find yourself in a position where you’re going to have to bite the bullet and continue working long hours to get ahead for whatever reason. That’s understandable! But wouldn’t it make sense to start setting goals and planning how you intend to dedicate more family time in the near future, so you don’t let the same work cycle repeat itself.
No one on this planet can convince me that it’s impossible to make better use of their time so they can spend it with their family. I’m a firm believer in “every problem has a solution,” and it’s this attitude that’s helped me prevail through life’s hardships.
I still occasionally work extra hours away from home, but I end almost every night with a bedtime story for my kids, a hug and a kiss, and an “I love you.” In doing so, I reinforce all the feelings of closeness I’ve shared with them throughout that particular day, even if I only had a chance to spend a few minutes with them.