7 Ways To Raise A Child To Trust AND Respect You

3. Admit your mistakes

We develop empathy and grace primarily through our own mistakes (if we learn from them). So admit you’ve made some. Like that time you hurt someone you love (when you didn’t know you had the power to hurt them). We learn who we are by learning first, who we’re not.

Tell your kids where you goofed up, when you were thoughtless or rude (to them and to others). Tell them how you felt about those blunders then, and how you feel about them now. What about when someone treated you poorly? How did you feel? How did you forgive?

If you flew off the handle last night — remember to apologize, right away. Tell your child how you wish you’d handled the situation and what you plan to do in future circumstances. Let them know that you’re human too and you still may not always get it right.