Let your children express who they are and let them become the person they are meant to be.
Build their self-worth. Grow their self belief. Develop their self-efficacy.
Engage in conversations with your child and encourage them to articulate their views; as simplistic and naive or completely ridiculous as they may be.
I grew up voiceless.
That sounds harsh, I know.
But that is what I remember from most of my childhood.
Not the fun stuff. I remember feeling anxious about everything.
Don't get me wrong, I did my fair share of being naughty. And I wasn't locked in a cupboard or kept in a basement or anything physically terrible. I was just expected to be in the background.
I was good at it.
And it destroyed my confidence.