As parents who love our children, one of our main objectives to raising healthy minded and goal oriented children is to give them a sense of purpose in life. Here are some tips not only to assist your children, but to also help them adopt to higher values, to meet their higher and highest needs, and to feel meaning and purposeful.
As parents who love our children, one of our main objectives to raising healthy minded and goal oriented children is to give them a sense of purpose in life. Many people may disagree about whether or not purpose in life can be found through employment or leisure activities, but few will debate the necessity for living life with a feeling of purpose and meaning. Even kids need to feel that they are important and can help accomplish tasks.
This sense of purpose and meaning should be established very early in your child’s life. This must be constantly reinforced through adulthood. It is a very important part of the work that you can do for your child to be raised as a self confident and peacefully driven adult.
Ask any adult about how they feel about “childhood” and they will invariably tell you that childhood is regarded as a carefree, idyllic period. But the truth is that many children are unable to find inner ways to handle life’s difficulties. They are not truly living a childhood of “carefreeness” as most adults think they are. Just consider the childhood autism, schizophrenia, drug abuse, suicides, violence, and you will see that many of these children require specific and skillful interventions to acquire a meaningful life.
To help offer some basic assistance, I have tried to outline a few ideas for assisting your children, regardless of their current ages or positions in life. These tips not only can help in assist your children, but they can also help them adopt to higher values, to meet their higher and highest needs, and to feel meaning and purposeful.
1.. Be sure to place as much emphasis on the quality of life for your children, instead of teaching them to grab as much ‘stuff’ and ‘things’ that they can by accumulating as much as possible. Help by encouraging them to appreciate everything that comes along in life. Show that that the magic is in nature and the world around them. Point out the beauty of life and the view of a sunset. Marvel together at the way a tree or a flower can grow from a seed. Enjoy the simple things we often take for granted.
2. To help your young children to meet their own basic needs of survival, be sure to allow them as much freedom to make decisions for themselves as possible. Of course your best judgment should be used so as not to jeopardize their safety. Let them make choices. Show them that their are reactions to their actions. Let them “fall” so to speak, in order to learn how their choices can affect their outcomes.
3. For even the most regular and simple events of your child’s day, use praise over and over again. Remind your children everyday of their lives that what they are doing right is important and meaningful. Let them know that they already have purpose. Praise them until you cannot praise them enough. Did I say praise? Find the little things they are doing right and let them know. Too often parents tend to be reactive and corrective, finding the good things and encrouraging your children is the first step in becoming a proactive parent that will help your child build the self confidence and purpose in life they need now and when they leave the nest.
How do I help my child develop a sense of purpose in life?
It starts with three things: emphasizing quality of life over accumulating things, giving them age-appropriate freedom to make real choices and experience consequences, and pouring on genuine praise for what they do right. Purpose grows when children feel capable and valued — teach them to find meaning in small moments, let them “fall” and learn, and remind them constantly that what they are doing already matters.
Why is it important for children to feel a sense of meaning and purpose?
Children who feel purposeful are better equipped to handle life’s difficulties. Without a sense of meaning, kids can struggle with motivation, resilience, and self-worth — and those challenges can follow them into adulthood. A child who grows up knowing they matter, that their actions make a difference, and that life has beauty worth noticing is far better positioned to navigate hardship than one who simply has things handed to them.
How does praising my child help them build confidence and purpose?
Praise signals to your child that what they’re doing has value — and when that feedback comes consistently and sincerely, they internalize it. Instead of waiting to react when something goes wrong, actively look for the small things they’re doing right and name them. Specific, genuine praise — “I noticed you helped your sister without being asked” — carries far more weight than a generic “good job” and builds the self-confidence that lets children feel purposeful even when things are hard.
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