Parenting with Courage Values-Based Parenting

By Dr. Chrissy Chard, parenting coach and educator, and the founder of Courageous Parents

Here’s the truth: parenting is HARD. Between the sleep deprivation (whether it’s because you have littles or because your older children’s problems are keeping you up), the constant feeling of being needed, the never-ending list of to do's, and the absolute barrage of outside forces telling you how you “should” parent, it’s no wonder so many of us end up feeling lost. In fact, in a recent PEW research study, most parents (62 percent) reported that parenting has been harder than they expected, with over a quarter of parents (26 percent) reporting that parenting is a lot harder (anyone else feeling seen?).

Over the next four months, we will explore how to uncover an approach to parenting that is grounded in ease and self-trust so that parenting doesn’t feel so hard (sign me up!). This month, we will delve into how to use values as the inner compass from which all our parenting decisions can be guided. Then, in the subsequent three months, we will explore parenting through the lens of brain science, emotional intelligence, and tangible strategies. Each month I’ll also share some simple homework we can do to make progress in the direction toward more ease and confidence in our parenting. Shall we?

Clarifying our Values

While it would be great if there were a singular manual we could all read to teach us how to parent effectively (and I’d argue there are some books that get close), the