Our next Tele-Seminar is in 2 weeks! I am really excited for our newest class. The presenter is my friend Dr. Shira Wiesen.
The topic:
Emotional IQ- Empowering Our Children to Become Smarter Emotionally
Her presentation is about an important subject, how to help kids develop their emotional intelligence. Why is this important? Because adults and children with emotional intelligence experience more authentic happiness and success in life.
To help us get to know Dr. Wiesen, I interviewed her. Here is what she has to say about parenting:
1.What is the best parenting advice you ever got?
The best advice I ever got was to seek out and be open to parenting advice. Sometimes it is really hard to admit I don’t have all of the answers or know exactly what to do with my kids in all situations. It is sometimes even harder to admit something is a problem to begin with! Once I was able to admit my shortcomings as a parent I was able to utilize resources around me, including books, seminars, friends, and family, that have broadened my competence, increased my confidence, and exponentially improved my skills.
2. You run many workshops with parents, what do you think is the most important thing parents need to know about raising kids?
I think parents need to know (and constantly be reminded!) that there is no ONE way to parent, no “magic skill” that ensures success 100% of the time. Every kid is unique and responds to different parenting techniques, just as every parent has their own style and approach to parenting. Being open to new ways of handling situations and different ways of reacting to our children allows us to be more effective in raising well-rounded, successful kids. This knowledge allows you as a parent to make mistakes, not have all the answers, and still enjoy the joy-ride.
3.What is your basic parenting philosophy ?
My parenting philosophy stems from my Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) training. DBT is primarily concerned with validating feelings and being able to see both your own perspective as well as someone else’s. This allows you to maintain your own beliefs about a situation, while simultaneously being able to understand how someone else can see the same facts completely differently. Importantly, both people are therefore “right”. If a parent can effectively convey to his or her children that they have valid, reasonable thoughts and feelings, then the parent would be in a far superior position to de-escalate a tantrum, have open dialogues, and effectively set limits.
4. What do you love most about running your workshops?
I run workshops where parents and adolescents participate together in the experience. Therefore, the whole family unit learns new ways of handling emotions, communicating effectively, and improving their relationships. I love seeing the change in skeptical families when they experience the “aha” moment after finally trying something different at home and seeing how much more enjoyable and effective it has made them. Seeing an entire family make progress and move towards effective communication and emotional stability is personally inspiring and professionally rewarding.
I can’t wait to hear her presentation!
Come and join us:
Emotional IQ- Empowering Our Children to Become Smarter Emotionally