Don't Put Off Doing the Hard Work
Let us burst your bubble just a little bit – things never slow down; it’s never the right time, and our children’s issues will only continue to get worse if we don’t address them.
Needless to say, our children also get bigger and stronger over time. So, if there is something like physical aggression occurring, that will become even more unmanageable down the line.
Do the Hard Work Now
It’s always going to be hard work to tackle some of the issues that our children are struggling with.
Let’s say that your child is struggling with listening to you and following directions when asked to clean up toys (Read: Why Doesn't My Child Listen???).
How frustrating it must be every single day to go through the push and pull of asking your child to clean up and reliably getting a meltdown in response.
So, you start to avoid it. You push bedtime later... the house becomes a mess because the toys are never put away... you bribe your child with candy or treats just to avoid the meltdown (Read: Why Reinforcement is Not a Bribe).
What is Being Done is Making the Problem Worse
Finally, a year later, you’re finally ready to do the hard work to address the issue, struggle through a week of difficulty, but then you have a significant shift, and your child is listening!
Your life is better, your child’s life is better, and your house is better. Now to think, you could have achieved this better life a year earlier had you just committed to addressing the issue early on. Hindsight is certainly 20/20, but if you're reading this blog post, NOW is an excellent time for you to address your child's behavior and get to the better, sooner!
The Takeaway
It’s never too late to start addressing your child’s behavior, and the sooner you do it, the better for your child AND you.