In a world that wants to make him soft I'm teaching him that a man keeps his word, looks people in the eye, and takes responsibility for his actions. We shake hands, not hug acquaintances. We say please and thank you. We work hard without complaining. He's 11 and already has more integrity than most adults I know. His mother thinks I'm too strict but I know what he needs. Real men are built not born.
You're nailing it. Those values matter now more than ever. My son's still young but I'm with you on the integrity piece - that's what I want him to know.
Respect that. Teaching a kid to own their choices and be straight with people will take them further than anything else. Eye contact and honesty go a long way.
I'm with you on a lot of this. There's nothing soft about being honest, taking responsibility, and treating people with respect. That's actually what takes real strength.
I get the spirit of what you're saying but my 8 year old is still gonna need help tying his shoes sometimes and that's okay. There's a difference between being resilient and just being mean about it.
to join the conversation.
Teaching him to keep his word and look people in the eye are solid life skills. Those things actually matter. Are you doing anything specific to reinforce that or is it more just modeling it and calling it out when you see it?