Reliability is an important life lesson that unfortunately does not come naturally to everyone. It is a quality that makes people easier to get along with. It can be frustrating to be in a relationship with someone who is not reliable, as it brings confusion and inconvenience to both the other person and everyone else around.
By being reliable, your child will become known by their behavior, and will eventually become a pillar in their community because of their trustworthiness. Here are some points about being reliable that once learned, will strengthen this quality in your child.
Reliability Takes Effort
Being reliable is not easy, and it does not generally come naturally. It is in our human nature to want to do whatever is convenient and whatever takes little effort on our part. In order to be known as reliable, we must be in a state of constant growth. It takes effort to think ahead so that we will not be caught in situations where we feel powerless because of a lack of planning. This does get easier over time, but it is a continuous effort on our part. Teach this to your child, so they are not surprised by how difficult it can be to make yourself reliable.
Reliability Takes Discipline
Those who are lazy and don’t want to put in much effort are never those who are known as reliable. If you want the reputation of being a reliable person, it takes self-discipline to make it happen. If you want to be on time to your commitments, it takes some planning.
Start with a normal routine to teach this to your child, such as the school day routine. Talk to your child about how they can streamline the process by doing little things such as getting their clothes ready the night before, planning what breakfast they will eat, and setting their alarm clock with sufficient time to get ready for the day. This gives them the structure that makes reliability more likely.
Reliability Takes Practice
Getting it right doesn’t happen on the first time. If often takes several tries, and several failures. It will eventually happen, though, and you will be rewarded by your effort as you see things coming together little by little. Teach your child to strive for perfection, but not to beat themselves up over not reaching their goals in a perfect manner. Train them to reward themselves with any improvement on their part, in this and all areas.
Reliability Takes Determination
Being reliable takes determination. It is easy to give up and let things slide. However, it is an important enough quality that it is worth pursuing wholeheartedly. Remind your child that this is a quality worth striving for.
Reliability is sorely lacking in our world today. Many people fall into the habit of keeping life convenient for themselves, and often forget about their importance to others in the process. By teaching our children to be reliable when it comes to their availability and their promises, we will create the great leaders of tomorrow.
