There are always things that moms want to teach their children, and make sure they know as they go through life. These are things like kindness, responsibility and empathy, and they can be hard things to teach children because adults just do them without even thinking about them.
Family values are things that are important to every family out there. According to Fingerprint For Success, family values are important because it can make decision-making easier. Once your children know what your family values, it can help guide them on their decision-making skills in the future.
They can also help the family bond be tighter, and it can remind families that they are all in this together, and remind children as they grow what is important in life. However, with so many values, mom may not know which ones are most important, and we have 10 that are really worth considering.
10 Self-Compassion
According to Better Up, it is important to remember that everyone needs to love, and accept, themselves before they can love and care for those around them. This means that the most important family value is to show yourself some love and compassion.
Once everyone loves themselves, it is easy to care for others. Take some time every day to talk about the things everyone loves about themselves. It can be a great morning ritual over breakfast.
9 Be Kind
Another one that is incredibly basic, but important is to be kind to everyone. While we may not agree with everything someone else says, or does, it is important to be kind always. This means using some empathy and always speaking in a kind way.
8 Flexibility
Flexibility is an important family value, according to Fatherly. Life will always deliver things that are unexpected, and hard to manage, and flexibility is going to be the way families get through it. Perhaps the family was planning a trip, but the car breaks down and plans change. When the family has already learned how to be flexible, it can be easier to cope with changes.
7 Fairness
Fairness is a trait that is important for families, but it can also extend into society. If children are brought up in a home that values fairness, and treating everyone as an equal, they can carry this trait into their school, on the playground and into their adult lives. Fairness is something that can be seen in everything a family does, from who rides in the front seat to board games.
6 Responsibility
Every parent wants to make sure they are raising a child who is responsible. The best way to make sure that this is happening is to make sure that responsibility is one of the family values. Everyone has to do their part in the home. This can be listed out on a chore chart, or discussed at family meetings, but when it is a family value, it can be easier for parents to implement tasks.
5 Honesty
If honesty is going to be a family value, that means that everyone has to follow it, and they should because it is an important one. That means that mom and dad can not fall into the little white lies that parents often tell, like the “park is closed.” Everyone has to be honest for the family value to stick.
4 Respect
Respect is something that comes naturally to a lot of adults, but it is a trait that children have to learn and the best way for them to learn it is to have it as a family value. Respect should be mutual, and it needs to be given to the children from the parents for them to really learn how to respect those around them.
3 Integrity
Integrity is not the same thing as honesty, and it is an important family value to implement. It is important that everyone is trustworthy, and this is crucial for a family. Family should be a group of people that everyone can rely on always, and this means that they all have to have some level of integrity.
2 Respecting Boundaries
Every member of the family should be respecting the boundaries of everyone else. This means that when someone says that they want some time alone, or they don’t want to be touched, it should be respected at all times.
1 Family Time
Above all else, family time should be a family value, and this can get harder as children age, but it is important to make it a priority. Once a week, everyone should make it a priority to spend some time together as a family. This could be an outing together, or a night in playing board games.
Sources: Fingerprint For Success, Better Up, Fatherly