Tips and strategies to coaching and mentoring your child
Sometimes your role as parent or guardian is going to involve coaching and mentoring your child so they can build their resilience. This will help them manage the day-to-day challenges they face as a new employee.
Three ways to take on the role of coach and mentor to your child
1. Ask questions and let them solve their own challenges
When our child is stuck, upset or annoyed, our first inclination as parents is often to just tell them what to do. But while this may make us feel better and solve the immediate problem, it's not an approach that teaches them coping or problem-solving skills.
A better approach is to use questions to guide them through their challenges, coaching them to solve problems themselves.
Ask questions like:
- What do you think you should do next?
- How do you think you should approach this?
- What did you do the last time you were in a situation like this?
- If you were telling me what to do, what advice would you give me?
- Why do you think have things happened this way?
- If you woke up tomorrow and everything was better, what would be different?
2. Make time to listen to what they are saying and feeling
Engaging in conversation with your child about their day-to-day experiences can be very valuable. Too often we hear, but we don't really listen. Active listening means being entirely focused on the other person. When you are using active listening, you are making an effort to really listen and process what the other person is saying. This will help you to "hear" what is said and what is unsaid. Also remember to acknowledge the validity of your child's stress, tension and worries. Tell them that you hear them, and talk to them about how they can cope with these challenges.
3. Help them understand the different generations at work
The workplace is very different to what it was five or ten years ago. Generational clashes at work happen every day, so it is important to understand the main differences between each generation.
