Hi Everyone. We all have little kids in our house and we all are guardians for them in one way or the onther. As parents and guardians, we always ensure growth of our child since the childhood years so that our child can master the skillsets with time and remain ahead

As parents, it is very important to identify a child’s hobby first so that we can nurture that hobby during their formative years which our child can further transform that hobby in to a skillset

So, Let’s talk about how can parents identify the child’s hobbies which your child enjoys and which can be transformed into a skillset over the period of time.

1) Watch and observe your child: This is an amazing quality of a parent to just sit back and watch your child grow, watch your child as to which are the things that your child enjoys. Like for example- Does your child loves writing/ enjoys reading books/ is the child sporty/ or a matter of fact if he loves opening up all the screws of the working gadgets and then gathers them back? Watch if your child loves to decorate the house/ Observe if the child loves to plan surprised events for your family etc. In today’s digital world, every hobby can be turned into a skillset. Being observant on parent’s side is extremely important.

2) See what interests and excites your child: As parents, apart from just being observant, we need to see as to what activities your child loves to engage in. By this, you will understand which activities excites the child most amongst various activities. Accordingly, parents can create favourable conditions.

3) Let your child be inquisitive: This is extremely important. Children always seeks answers to their questions until they are completely satisfied else they will keep on asking. And believe me this is a quality of a sharp mind. This simply means that the child is processing information in a positive way and is trying to clear all the doubts by seeking answers. Their inquisitive nature will help them deep dive further and they will surely come up with more questions and as parents we shall give them answers and not negate them

4) Don’t do stuffs for your child: We all know that as parents, we always want to protect our children out of love and affection. But we should let the children do their own stuffs or their own chores. This will help gaining confidence in children and will make them independent along with taking independent decisions as well. If they will do what they want independently then it will clear a lot of doubts for them along with practising as well

5) Welcome all questions from your child:  Always be welcoming to answer your child ‘s questions and never ignore them. Let the child feel that their questions are welcomed so that they can fall back to the parents for guidance. Please remember that if parents are not welcoming then the child will connect with strangers or will take the help of internet which might not be good guiding source for them. This way a child always visit parents to express their true nature towards the activities they love

6) Let your child be a free thinker: As parents, we are only supposed to advice them and share our experiences. But let them believe “NO ONE”. Yes you heard it right. Always make it a point that your child understands and learns from his experiences and not yours and this way, he will be free thinker. Let your child follow No One. When a child learns from his experiences then he understands both “ups and downs” of the situations and learns to manage them well. This way he will be able to take better decisions for the activities or hobbies that the child loves the most

7) Never teach your child to attach/ relate any hobby to monetization: This is yet another point. Please do not tell them that which hobby will give better turn over or better Rate of returns in terms of money. Please ensure that in today’s world anything could be monetized and that too at any level. This way you will be teaching your child that no hobby is small or big. Only that hobby is important in which a child gets happiness. Let your child figure it out in later years as to how to monetize the same.

8) Respect Individuality of your child: Neither compare your two kids with each other and nor compare your kids to anyone else. Remember every child is individual and possess some individual traits/ likes and dislikes. Also remember that every child cannot do everything and hence never ask your child to do something which others are definitely doing but your child either does not like it or is not interested in. Let your child do what he/ she wants and Let your child decides if he/ she wants to pursue further

9) Be okay if your child changes his/ her interests: This is yet another point to be noted and to be taken with a pinch of salt. As parents, please be okay if at any point in time, your child switches interests. Please understand that when a child tries to pursue some hobby then there is always a difference between actually liking it and then practising and then finally pursuing the same. And plus your child is in formative years. Sometimes he will be attracted towards one hobby and sometimes to another. But again let your child decides which hobby is something which gives an edge over and above all hobbies.

10) Never keep in mind family traditions: I have seen where parents who belong to one group of interests wants their kids also to adopt same hobbies or interests. Or there are many parents out there who wants their kids to become something or to pursue those hobbies which they liked but couldn’t pursue for some reason. I would again say, no two people are same and Let your child feels independent in choosing their hobbies which they like.

11) Pressurizing element: Please never pressurize your child to like certain hobby or pursue some hobby out of pressure. Always let your child be the deciding factor out of his/ her  aspirations and likes and dislikes

Now once you are able to identify your child’s hobby, now it’s time to actually nurture it so that with time the child nurtures it and transforms the same into a skillset with years of practise. Let’s see how you can nurture your child’s hobby into a skillset

1) Find time for your child’ s hobby apart from study and Play time: As parents, it’s our responsibility to keep some time in hand on a daily routine where your  child can learn to master his / her own hobby. Remember, with time, the child will grow interest and will learn to master it as well

2) Training schools/ Institutes: Search the most reliable and reachable institutes which can actually help growing your child’s talent and can help in mastering their hobbies. These will surely help your child transform a hobby to a skillset

3) Make your child aware as to why you are asking him/her to join any training sessions: Always keep your child informed about any step that you are taking. This way you will help getting a view point from your kids as well so that they don’t get overburdened or feel pressurized while joining the classes.

4) Practice: Let your child practice on his own terms and as per own timings. Practise will help master your child’s hobbies and will eventually transform into a skillset

5) No hobby has any time/ Age limit to pursue: Always keep calm and as parents, understand that there is no age or time limit when your child starts pursuing their hobbies. Whenever your child will start liking or start understanding the importance of any hobby, that time and age will always be good to start with.

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