When one of your tiny toddler’s big emotions jumps up to bite you, one of the greatest feelings of shame for many parents comes from not knowing how to handle it; or worse still, feeling like you haven’t handled it well.

I’m sure you don’t need me to tell you, but parenting can be tough. You have a child destined for great things to be responsible for. There is no perfect parent or child, but somehow we always manage to find shame in not living up to these fanciful expectations.

It is a great service to your child to raise them with a strong will. The world isn’t an easy place to get along in. Preparing your child to back themselves through life’s trials is setting them up for success in the future. Unfortunately, it can also feel like setting yourself up for arguments in the supermarket snack aisle.

Describing a child as ‘strong-willed’ can often bring with it a hefty amount of negative baggage.

You went to the store for a gallon of milk, but for some reason or another, you’ve left with a screaming toddler unable to fathom the logic of not being allowed a whole box of chocolate cookies on a whim. It feels like the entire store is glaring at you. It feels somewhere along the way, somehow, like you’ve failed as a parent.

The reality is that perspective is everything, especially in raising a toddler. This isn’t a failure, this is an opportunity to help mold your child into a dynamic individual prepared for whatever the future holds.

The change of perspective I want to share with you is understanding that the big emotions that often lead to 'meltdowns' or 'tantrums' or 'hissy-fits' often have nothing to do with you or your child’s personality. They have everything to do with little minds processing ideas that are bigger than themselves.

What I want to share with you is an understanding of the way those little minds are wired and strategies to help your child wrangle with these big feelings without all the tears.

My book, and your go-to guide, Raising Strong Willed Toddlers: Powerful Tools to Raising a Natural Leader will teach you:

Strong-willed truths: the psychology behind why our children can act the way they do.

Step-by-step techniques for managing key parenting battlegrounds like saying ‘no,’ potty training, and many more.

Tips for helping to nurture your child’s strong will, to grow it into genius or leadership ability in later life.

How to keep your head when things get to be a little too much.

All of these tips and strategies are backed by experience, and a psychological understanding of the little minds it is our responsibility to develop.

Whether you’re struggling to implement your own strategies, or are completely at a loss for what to do, there’s something in here to make parenting your strong-willed toddler that much more effective.

There’s no reason to battle through your child’s toddler years with stress and high emotions. There’s even less reason to think of yourself as a failure for not having all the answers already.

There’s no reason to think of yourself as an inadequate parent. Simply by picking up this book you prove you’re willing to learn and develop new techniques to do right by your kids.

Michelle Mann

Books