Q: How do I stop my child from giving up too easily? I am worried about raising a quitter.

It’s always important to encourage perseverance with your children. Children tend to give up when they reach a level of skill they are comfortable with – often because they do not believe they are good enough to excel.

As far as helping your child to not give up too easily, try these tips:

1. Set realistic expectations.

   If you set the bar too high you are setting your child up to fail. In order to help your child persevere, you need to set reachable goals to motivate them to continue. This is not to say that you should make everything easy for your child, but you should help your child seek goals that are challenging yet attainable.

2. Follow their interests.

   Your child is not going to follow through with piano lessons if he does not like playing the piano. Choose activities based on what your child is interested in – and accept that over time their interests may change.

3. Make adjustments.

   As mentioned above, children’s interests do change. Perhaps the sport your daughter plays this summer doesn’t interest her next summer, yet a different one does. As long as your child puts effort into a task, it is okay to switch gears to something that may be more appealing to them.

4. Get involved.

   There is nothing wrong with getting hands on to help keep your child motivated. If your little one struggles through homework each night then sit down with them and guide them through it. When your little one tosses their puzzle across the room because it’s too hard, get in their and help them out.

5. Praise their efforts.

   No matter their achievements, children need to know that they are doing a good job. Make sure to reinforce every step of their goal, not just the moment they attain it.

6. Listen to your child.

   Maybe your kid just hates what he’s trying to do. Never disregard the way your child feels about anything. Instead, talk with them about why they feel that way and help them determine their own solutions to the problem. A self-conscious teen may not want to continue an activity because they feel they are not good enough and are being judged by others – perhaps they need help practicing more and developing their skills.