Emotional Intelligence For Dummies®

Chapter 16. Raising an Emotionally Intelligent Child

In This Chapter

• Recognizing your child's emotional world

• Increasing your child's awareness of her emotions

• Helping your child overcome negative behaviors

• Fostering your teenager's emotional intelligence

Everyone wants the best for their children. But you can easily get confused if you try to sort out all the things that experts tell you to do when raising your children. You don't find a shortage of experts in the parenting field.

You probably heard the advice that you should be strict and use discipline but also be lenient and not set too many rules. Get your child involved in as many activities as possible, but make sure that you don't make him a hurried child (one who is pushed into too many extra-curricular activities). And heaven help you if your child can't read or do algebra by age 3!

Seriously, at times, all the advice being thrown at you in newspapers and on TV, radio, Web sites, blogs, and social networks can make you dizzy. In this chapter, I deal with one aspect of child-rearing — helping your child become emotionally intelligent. New research demonstrates the benefits of helping your child develop emotional skills. Your child can better succeed in social situations at school, which can dramatically affect educational and future work success. Nurturing your child's EQ helps ensure that she'll have success as an adult in the workplace and more satisfaction in her intimate and social relationships.

Understanding Your Child

Understanding ...