Four Ways to Help Your Son Be Organized and Responsible for Life! via The MOB Society
As a mom of a boy, you know that getting boys to clean up after themselves is hard to do. Maybe getting them to shower everyday and put on deodorant is slightly easier…right? But, teaching them good hygiene and cleaning up after themselves takes four things:
1. Consistency – teaching your boys to clean up after themselves or how to declutter their stuff does you no good if you aren’t consistent. Boys need to be reminded {not nagged} to keep their rooms cleaned. They need to declutter their own things as they get older. You set them up for success when they learn to be independent in decision making by giving away things that they no longer need to others who could benefit from them.
2. Respect – when your boys are messy or constantly break things without any consequences or expectation to replace the item, it’s disrespectful. Boys must learn to take care of things. They need to accept responsibility for what they don’t take care of or break. We are in the thick of this right now with our teenager. Even if you can easily pay for the damage, think about having them find ways to repay their debt. In real life, they are expected to do this, too.
3. Appreciation – One of the ways your boys can appreciate you as a mom is by being kind, respectful, and taking care of the chores or various responsibilities they’ve been given. Mom doesn’t need to clean up after them when they make a mess. From the start, teach them that if they make a mess, they clean it up. Teach them to be appreciative and this will carry on later in their lives. Through your example and training your boys will learn to appreciate their wives, children, and jobs.
4. Follow up – As with consistency, following up with them and making sure they follow through on their chores is important. You’re setting them up for success when you check up on what you asked them to do. Their future boss will be happy and your boy will likely be successful.
What ways can you help your son to improve in taking responsibility or with being organized?
Becky Barnfather
Becky is blogger, speaker, piano teacher, wife and mom to two children – her son is 15 {he has autism} and her daughter is 10. She is passionate about motivating women to organize and have a relaxed and calm home {as much as possible}. She’s not OCD and not a perfectionist – just a girl who loves to organize. You can find her blogging atwww.OrganizingMadeFun.com
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Following. I try so hard to teach these skills in my home. I must say I find it hard. I have a short fuse and seem to move too quickly to “nagging.” I would love to hear how other moms manage points 1 and 4. Should there be a point 5 for disciplining when points 1 and 4 do not work?
It’s easy to post what needs to be done; the hard part is how. Yes, getting them to appreciate you, as a mother, is great! How one does that is also important. Kids learn to appreciate others when they, themselves, are appreciated. When they’re young, working beside them to clean up and making it fun is a good way to start. This makes consistency much easier for parent and child. When it’s fun for both, the work is it’s own reward. As they grow, we (as parents) must gradually step back and let them take on more responsibility.
[…] Four Ways to Help Your Son Be Organized and Responsible for Life!– As a mom of a boy, you know that getting boys to clean up after themselves is hard to do. Maybe getting them to shower everyday and put on deodorant is slightly easier…right? But, teaching them good hygiene and cleaning up after themselves takes four things: […]