Making Your Child in Your ImageYour child can be everything you never were, and more! Dress up your living doll just the way you like, highlight their best features, prevent them from seeking styles you do not approve of and make sure they are presentable at all times - you never know when a neighbour or talent scout might drop by.
A cute, well-groomed child showcases your talents and taste and provides you with a beautiful blank canvas on which to paint your dream. This is the approach to adopt if you want to invest heavily in your plaything and seek to use them as a conduit for your own desires and wishes. |
No CompetitionYou may not want your child to compete with you for attention, love and admiration. There are two strategies you can adopt for a "No Competition" approach.
The first seeks to invest minimum effort in your child's appearance and communicate clearly that you have other priorities and interests. Neglecting the child's appearance, clothing and hygiene will make them an easier rival to deal with. Alternatively, if you feel more threatened by your child and want to make damn sure you win, you may benefit more from actively presenting your child in the least flattering light. |
Handy How-To Guides
You can find a collection of different practical tactics here, applicable in all sorts of life situations:
Stick to Your Guns
Whichever approach you choose, keep in mind that parenting is a ful-time job. Even the neglectful "no competition" approach requires that you monitor your child for disappointing developments, give them the wrath of God from time to time and deliver a steady stream of unsupportive comments.
It goes without saying that the engaged "your child is you" approach is even more taxing, and is therefore best suited for parents who have little or no other content in their lives or are not happy with the level of control they achieve in other spheres like work or their partnership. |
Flexible, Scalable Solutions
Mix and Match Tactics to Suit Your Momentary Needs as Situations Arise
While you may choose an overall approach that you will apply most of the time, there is no reason not to use these approaches alternately, as circumstances dictate.
You may for example care intensely about how your child looks, taking a very engage strategy here, while entirely neglecting your child's medical needs because they are burdensome.
Your child's age may also call for a switch in tactics. The best approach is to be sensitive to the specific situation, your child's demeanour and your current mood and pick the strategy that seems right at the moment.
Ramp your efforts up or scale them down flexibly, as and when you like.
You may for example care intensely about how your child looks, taking a very engage strategy here, while entirely neglecting your child's medical needs because they are burdensome.
Your child's age may also call for a switch in tactics. The best approach is to be sensitive to the specific situation, your child's demeanour and your current mood and pick the strategy that seems right at the moment.
Ramp your efforts up or scale them down flexibly, as and when you like.
Vigilance Pays Off
Remember that children are more resistant to some demands than others. If you are looking to raise your child as a revised version of yourself, you may need to be relentless in the following areas:
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Pervasive Parenting
For best results, your parenting work should be pervasive and all encompassing. Spare no aspect of your child's life; you never know what knock-on effects there may be.
If in doubt, remember that nothing is too little to be a source of criticism, nor is anything too big to be ignored if you deem it necessary. Do not be fooled by modern notions of privacy and individual freedom: as a parent, you have a life-time ticket to access and control all areas of your child's being. |