Simple Techniques Good Parents Are Using to Get Their Children to Listen

Let's face it, children can be bossy little people. Toddlers and pre-schoolers seem to have the common belief that they (not the parents) are in charge of everything around them. You may often find that your young child demands of you to "turn on cartoons," "take them to the park, now!," or various other commands that their little minds believe are supposed to be carried out by parents when and how the child wants it done.

Many parents tend to fall into compliance with the demands of their children, often to avoid the stress of an angry child throwing a fit. While it may seem as though you're not doing much harm by complying with the demands of your children to stay awake "just ten more minutes," or "read one more story," the truth is that these are things that could all potentially lead to worsening behavior and (gasp!) even worse listening skills as time goes on and your children grow older. When you cave to these orders by your children you are not only fueling their beliefs that they are the boss, but you are showing them that not listening to you has no adverse or disciplinary effects.

If you're one of the many parents who have fallen into this scheme with children, you're probably finding that each day gets a little more difficult in dealing with your children. By not implementing a form of discipline and teaching your children the value and importance of respecting you as a parent, it will only get harder to establish boundaries for them and you may one day find that it is nearly impossible to get your children to comply with anything that you ask of them.

While it may be difficult at times, yelling at your children when they do not listen can only have negative effects. For starters, chances are your children still will not listen to you as an angry parent is quite a small price to pay for the extra minutes of fun that they are getting watching cartoons rather than going to the dinner table like you have asked of them. Even worse, you are teaching your children that yelling is okay and this will surely backfire on you in the future as you find that you're often having full-blown screaming wars with your kids. Rather than yelling at your child, opt for stooping to the eye level of your child and calmly repeating to them that you want them to sit down for dinner.

If the above technique does not work (which it probably won't at first) calmly explain to your child that unless they sit down at the table within a specific time frame (say, by the time you count to ten) that he or she will not be allowed the privilege of having dessert that night. By giving your child an ultimatum that has an unpleasant consequence for them if they do not do as they are told, you will often find that the child would much rather sit down for dinner rather than miss dessert.

An important thing to remember when using these techniques is that you must follow through with the consequences you have implemented as punishment for not listening to you. If, by the time you reach the count of ten your child has still not complied and found their way to the dinner table, you must remain firm on your word of no dessert. Your entire technique will be for nothing if you later fall for the pity scheme and allow your child to have dessert. Instead, let your child know that there will be no dessert tonight since he or she did not listen to you and do as they were told, but that they will have another chance tomorrow to behave themselves and be able to have dessert.

Making the transition with your children and attempting to establish a routine in discipline will be difficult at first, as your child will naturally (and out of habit) rebel from your requests. The most important thing you can do in order for these techniques to have a positive effect is to maintain your composure and stick with the routine. It will take some time to see results, but the time that you will invest will be well worth the effort in the future when you're saving yourself from screaming matches that end with no avail.