Every parent wants their child to grow up to be independent and confident, however often a fear of injury stops them from fostering such traits at a young age. Confidence and independence are actually easier to help develop in toddlers than one may expect and the process is not dangerous at all.

The first step in raising an independent and confident child is to step back and let them do things from time to time. If your child is, say trying to go down some stairs, do not automatically pick him/her up, and lift them down the stairs. Offer encouragement and maybe even instruction, but otherwise stand by and simply prevent injury. Once your child does master new feats he or she will be instilled with a new confidence in their own ability and the independence to try.

Also avoid always planning every moment of your child’s day, try to offer opportunity for them to choose. Choice allows a child to understand the concept of making decisions as a child with no choice will find a hard time being independent. You can even simply offer a variety of choices for your child to pick from, such as “Do you want to wear this shirt or this one?” or during play time set them in a room full of toys and let them choose what you will be doing this playtime. Do be careful to allow choice but not to let yourself become the subordinate. If for example your child chooses what to do at playtime, it is still your choice when playtime ends. Do not give into fits your child may throw as he or she explores there new independence and becomes more confident.

You can also let your child observe your doing things and let them have a try to. Allowing your child to help you with everyday tasks not only forms a stronger bond between child and parent but also will make your child feel confident they can do the things mommy and daddy does too. In example, if you are folding laundry you could let your child put the socks in the drawers.

Finally always offer praise when your child accomplishes a new feat but avoid praising every little thing they do. Positive reinforcement is a powerful tool in instilling the characteristics in your child’s personality that will carry him or her furthest in life, however too much praise can lead to a child that expects to be praised. For clarities sake, say you were praised for every step you took in a mile long run. When you were then praised for running a mile, it would not seem so important and motivating because you had heard it at every step. In this same way, too much praise ruins the effectiveness of positive reinforcement for a child.