Want more love, character and achievement for your kids?

As a wife, mom and mom-in-law, business-owner, speaker, author, Certified Life Coach, Fitness Instructor and student (I’m getting my Master’s degree in Education: Teaching and Curriculum), I am constantly looking to find ways to help people change their lives for the better. Through this weekly column, I highlight a “current affair” that illustrates how you and I can make little changes in our lives and see big results.

This week, I was inspired by a recent GMA interview of David Brooks, author of The Social Animal and columnist for the New York Times, in which he suggests that successful people are not just IQ’s and beauty, but that a meaningful life can be measured for happiness by:

(1) character—the ability to persevere after setbacks, possess enough confidence to take risks, own up to your shortcomings, and control the worst of your impulses, and
(2) street smarts—the intuition in impromptu situations that allows you to think on your feet.

In Brooks' book, The Social Animal, even though he includes a good deal of research, I am encouraged by the simplicity of what he suggests will create a successful life. His premise begins with the idea that people learn from people they love. Therefore, he believes that a parent's greatest gift to his or her children is to teach them the non-cognitive skills of good character and healthy social skills in order to raise healthy, happy adults.

What do non-cognitive skills look like? Hugs. Smiles. Please and thank you. Good sportsmanship after a win or a loss. Tenacity. Perseverance. Temper control. Rewards. Gold stars. Time outs. Family outings. Respect for elders. Praying to God. Visiting the sick. Being on time. Laughing at self. Not yelling. Loving the unlovely. Generous giving. Humility. Healthy living. Not to gossip. Never to bully. Protect the weak. Don’t lie. Admit when you’re wrong. Forgive quickly.

I agree with David Brooks. You and I have a great responsibility to model little changes, such as those listed above, with the expectation that they will have big, lasting and immeasurable results in the lives of those we love.

Be encouraged,

Becky