I loved this study by Reem Raouda.
Examining over 200 parent-child relationships, she found that parents whose kids naturally cooperate avoid 5 specific phrases.
Including such classics as:
💬 “Because I said so.”
💬 “If you don’t listen, you’ll lose screen time.”
💬 “Stop crying! You’re fine.”
Instead, the parents whose children were most cooperative used language that did two things at once:
– Invited connection
– Without losing authority
The carousel below shows exactly how to do this in practice
👉 The 5 ‘toxic’ phrases
👉 What to say instead
👉 Why it works (backed by developmental science)
It’s totally understandable that parents say random things out of frustration.
We’re only human too!
And parenting can be EXHAUSTING.
Especially when you have kids who don’t seem to respond to textbook approaches.
But if you have the energy, and when the time is right, do try out some of these alternatives and see what happens.
You might find your kids do actually listen better, and your home becomes a more harmonious place.
