Look Out for that Snow Bank!

Living in Michigan, we have some pretty good winters.  And by “good” I do mean treacherous-snow-filled-freezing-winters.  I remember driving in the winter as a teenager with my older sister.  She was behind the wheel and attempted to pass the car in front of us who was driving way too slow for an impatient teen.  You can guess where this is headed: as soon as we got in the left lane to pass, the car began to slip and slide, and my sister cranked the steering wheel to respond to the crazy direction of the car's slide.  We ended up in the snow bank along the side of the road, safe and unharmed, but breathing heavy. Anyone who has lived and driven in winter climates will know one very important rule: Don’t over-correct.  More accidents are caused by over-correcting a car on slippery roads. 1. We all have times as parents when we over-correct our children.  We get triggered.  We are angry and scared.  We want to make certain our kids don’t repeat some mistakes.  Lots of reasons why, but they are all equally as dangerous. 2. Don’t be fooled by the little voice in our heads that “you have to do something about this now!”  What that voice is really telling you is that you need to react strongly NOW because if you don’t, the thing you fear will happen and you don’t want to feel this way again. 3. Reassure yourself of one simple truth: Small calculated changes done consistently over time are more powerful than large emotional changes done now.   Our children are developing humans who require more than a jerk of the proverbial Parenting Wheel.  Remember your drivers training.  Make slow calculated changes with your kids and stick with it.  We have them for at least 18 years and we will have many more chances to help them correct their behavior.  Don’t end up in the ditch because you fell for the lie of over-correcting.