Each child in a family has a unique personality. So has each parent. A family therefore is made up of parents and children each of whom has unique preferences, styles of operation and patterns of communication so that personality clashes are likely to occur. The natural tendency is for people to assume that their way is the right way, and expect others to change. If they don’t we conclude that they are being difficult and conflicts result. Understanding the nature of individual personality will help us change our perspective of family members. We can then see them as people with unique personalities which are different from ours and appreciate their strengths and weaknesses. Then we can adapt to them so that more harmonious family relationships become possible. Parents come and learn about personality profiling to improve interpersonal dynamics within your family. 

In the affluent society we live in today, many children do not grow up with a natural desire to strive for academic excellence. They already have so much given to them on a platter, and some have become self-indulgent as a result. Parents need to work much harder to motivate their children to study and to perform their best at school. Parents come and discover that motivating your children involves influencing them. Influencing them is not an automatic right,it is a privilege that is won which is the result of a solid parent-child relationship bond. Motivating your children to study well involves the art of communicating with them to build such a bond. The art of motivating also involves the use of positive self-talk as well as the effective use of incentives to shape desirable behavior.

Discipline is a misunderstood concept. Too many parents today tend to believe that discipline is the same as punishment and dismiss it too readily as something undesirable. Actually discipline involves ensuring that behavior is followed by the appropriate outcome. Appropriate behavior is rewarded by praise, affirmation or rewards. Similarly inappropriate behaviour needs to be followed up by some kind of negative outcome, either loss of privileges or punishment which has been agreed upon in advance. Discipline therefore is something positive which allows parents to shape desirable behavior in their children. Parents come and learn how to use positive discipline to ensure that your children grow up into responsible and well adjusted adults.

Many parents have difficulty dealing with their teenage children. They blame themselves when their darling children suddenly change into “monsters”. Parents also expect their teenage children to continue to behave the way they did when they were age six! Too many parents are unaware that teenage is a necessary stage of development in which children begin to detach from their parents and learn to think and act independently. Children need to go through this phase to develop into independent adults capable of making their own way in the world. Parents need to recognize that their teenage children are “trainee adults” going through a very confusing in-between period between childhood and adulthood. As such, it is the parents who need to change the way they talk to and interact with their teenage children. Parents come and learn about adolescence how you can support your teenage children as they steer through this challenging stage of development.  

Children are now growing up in a very complex and confusing world in which the usual moral guidelines are eroding and they are bombarded by a variety of electronic gadgets and computer games. Their parents also have higher expectations in terms of lifestyle choices and want the same for their children. Parents believe that academic qualifications are the key to a comfortable lifestyle and they push their children to perform well in school. This adds to the pressure that children face today and many suffer low-self esteem and unhealthy levels of anxiety, depression and stress which can interfere with their school work. Parents need to learn how to help their children process their frustrations, fears and self-doubts and empower them to rise above their daily challenges rather then succumb to them. Parents come and learn basic counselling skills which will empower them to help their children effectively.