How to be more Confident - It all begins with Me

5^th September 2016

Imagine the joy of seeing your child walk confidently through life being able to handle any situation that life offers to them.

Parents and teachers are the main source of a child's self worth, and their first teachers.

Confidence skills can be taught from a young age and will remain with the child for life.

Here are a few tips on how to encourage your child to become more confident:

1) Encourage them to see their inner and outer strengths.

a) Outer strengths: For example praise them for dressing well, grooming well, showing a happy face etc. …

Use words and phrases that show the child that you appreciate what they have done.
For example:
"Mary I like the way you have co-ordinated your outfit today – all the colours match well"
"When you style your hair like that it really suits you and looks chic"

b) Inner strengths: name them and also reward good behaviour.

"Mary I love it when you share with others as it shows that you care"
"I love to hear the positive thoughts that you bring to the conversation"
"I admire the fact you are determined, focussed and take responsibility"

2) Ensure a child feels loved.
Hug them, hold their hand, write them notes and most importantly let them know they are loved.
It is wonderful to hear the words "I love you".
Include their name so that they know the love is for them.
For example;
"Ria, I love you."

3) Make their environment positive.
Each child should have a space of their own on which you can build a wall of appreciation for them. Include positive pictures, certificates, awards, and any good comments that you have received about the child. Use hand written comments and post them on the wall to keep it alive and exciting. If space is limited and your children all share one bedroom, then allocate a small space on the wall for each child. With the right mind-set and some creativity, any space can become magical for the child.

3 top tips that are easy to apply.

Knowing them is not enough – we must apply and take action.

Do let me know how your child feels once you have tried these out for 7 days …. Miracles will result.

Schooling for Success

SoulKids joins a whole nation in congratulating the success of Joseph Schooling!

We are proud and humbled by his extraordinary achievement at a young age of 21.

It is important to remember that it was the combined efforts of the parents and Joseph together, which have changed the history of Singapore forever!

What can we learn from this unforgettable moment?

www.soulkids.org

Here are some lessons to learn from his parents –

1. They saw his strengths early, and built on them.
2. They believed in his dreams and intentions.
3. They took the non-conventional path for raising their child, and bringing out his uniqueness rather than trying to fit him into the conditioned lifestyle of society.
4. They invested in bringing out the potential inside their son. They supported his talents and passion with time, energy effort and finances.
5. They did not seek approval from society or individuals, instead they followed the voice of their heart. They did what was best for their son.
6. They believed in his dreams and visions, and didn’t just seek safety and security for his future.
7. They went through personal hardships to support him, and often put their needs at second place.
8. They understood the importance of superior coaching and training, and connected him to the best coaches they could access.
9. Whenever he didn’t achieve the victory he wanted, they stayed positive and encouraged him to persevere and improve.
10. Even in great victory, they stayed humble and gentle. The parents are true champions too!

Some lessons to learn from Joseph Schooling –

1. Joseph was dedicated to his dream! He developed a strong focus on the goal he wanted to achieve.
2. He adopted positive role models and mentors.
3. Joseph learnt from the best coaches he could find!
4. He cultivated discipline to wake up at 5.30am every morning to start his training day.
5. He continued to stay focused through the years, and continued to peck at one tree like a wise       woodpecker. He did not get distracted from his goals.
6. Joseph continued to think positive and kept his mind space protected from all the negativity of the world. He always fed the positive voice in his mind. He ignored the negative people and the nay-sayers.
7. He strove to be the best he could be, and put daily actions towards making his vision a reality.
8. He was willing to do what it takes and kept a long tern vision in mind. His amazing new world record was clocked at 50.39 seconds, but it was the result of 15 years of hard work and training.
9. His focus was on being the best, fighting for what he deserved and never quitting without trying his best.
10. He surrounded himself with people who encouraged and supported him, and moved away from those who didn’t.

Joseph is a true CHAMPION, and by his life, he defines his message to the world:

C = Commitment to his vision.

H = Happy to do the hard work and pay the price for the prize.

A = Attitude makes a big difference.

M = Mindset must be positive.

P = Persevere and persist through the hard times.

I = Integrity is important.

O = Optimize your efforts.

N = Never give up!

Champions are not born, they are built!

Everyone wants to be victorious like Joseph; let us also be willing to work hard like him and put in the 15 years of persistence it took to create the 50.39 second victory!

Majulah Singapura !

Majulah Joseph!

Low Self Esteem – How to support your child?

SoulKids teaches parents many skills and techniques to support their children if they ever face low self-esteem.

Here are some ways parents can help to raise self-esteem in their children.

5 Simple Tips to raise self-esteem in your children:

1. Keep your speech positive around your child. Be aware of what they hear from you and others in the family, because they imbibe and imitate what they hear.
2. Encourage your child to make small efforts, rather than take big leaps. Support their efforts when they make them and encourage them to do some more. Remember, small victories lead to greater ones.
3. Never compare your child. This habit is toxic to your child’s inner beliefs, and devalues the child’s self-esteem.
4. Do not dominate your child. If you are dominating and dictatorial, it weakens your child’s self-esteem. Either they will withdraw and become introverted, or they may rebel and swing the opposite way by becoming confrontational.
5. Avoid labelling your child in any way. Labels such as ‘you’re slow’, ‘you’re so dumb’ etc. are toxic to their self-belief.

Positive self-esteem in children helps them to become happy and successful, while low self-esteem will make them unhappy, sad or depressed.

High self-esteem leads to action, while low self-esteem will make them avoid taking actions. Since actions produce results, success is inevitably a result of high self-esteem.

SoulKids is an award-winning life skills program for children. Send your children to SoulKids and we will help them develop a positive and strong self-esteem.

We recommend all parents to attend our annual ‘SoulKids Mentor Training’ and learn SoulKids methods and secrets from Vikas Malkani himself.

Interview with Dana Ilies, SoulKids Mentor

Sally: What brought you to SoulCentre & SoulKids?

Dana: I first applied for an open job position at SoulCentre. I was recommended by a friend who is a student at SoulCentre.

In my interview I was very impressed by Sally who I found to be a very positive and happy person and by the calmness and peacefulness of SoulCentre itself.

And when I was accepted into the company, little did I realize that working for SoulCentre would be so exciting. In my 6 months since, I’ve grown and learnt about life and work, beyond my imagination. I’ve been involved in areas from basic admin to future planning, and everyday has been a fun and learning experience for me.

S: How did you hear about SoulCentre/ SoulKids?

D: My friend’s daughter attends SoulKids and she really loved Sally and Vikas. She told me how nice they are and how everybody at SoulCentre is happy and friendly.

I was recommended to SoulCentre by my friend.

S: What were your experiences of the SoulKids Mentor Training and the SoulKids Weekend?

D: The SoulKids Mentor training was the most transforming and enlightening experience of my life.

Vikas teaches that in order to be a Mentor you have to be an example of what you teach, and that the first step to mentoring is to make your teachings a part of you. You can’t give what you don’t have.

I think this is why the SoulKids programs are so powerful, because Mentors not only transmit information, they are living examples of what they teach.

The SoulKids weekend was a blast. To see 23 children have so much fun while learning such powerful life lessons was a true joy. I was impressed by the way children really absorb the lessons in SoulKids.

Hearing them say “This is my best day ever” or “I want to come to SoulKids everyday” was very rewarding too.

I’m also very grateful that I had such wonderful fellow Mentors on the mentor training with me. We were a very good team and had the best time together.

S: How has SoulKids changed you as an individual?

D: I will be the most positive person I know! This is my new motto after the SoulKids Mentor Training.

I’m empowered with all the wisdom Vikas gave us during training, and I now know how to keep myself positive and transmit positivity to people around me.

SoulKids mentor Training was really transformational for me!

S: What is your most important lesson from the SoulKids training?

D: It’s so difficult to choose only one!

I’d say the one that impressed me the most was the story of 10 000 mirrors who teaches us that the universe is a reflection of what we are.

If we are unhappy and negative, then what we see is all that’s unhappy and negative. If we want the universe to give us positive things we have to change our inside first.

There are so many great lessons, but that’s been a very impactful one for me!

S: What are your hopes / dreams and visions going forward?

D: My dream is to transmit the SoulKids wisdom and life lessons to as many children as I can.

I’m convinced that if we equip children with life skills which guide them to success and happiness, then not only will we have a lot more happy people, we will also be living in a better world.

I want to change the world one child at a time!

S: Anything else you want to share with our readers?

D: Action brings results, intentions don’t! I learnt this in my mentor training, and I apply it every day.

I advise everyone to get in touch and learn from SoulCentre, it will change your life for the better.

Thank you.

Parenting tips for stress free travel

The holidays are finally here!

Summer vacations, trips back home, family time, and travel to exotic locations. While all of the above sounds exciting and fun, if you are not well prepared, they can prove to be stressful as well.

So here are our top tips to enjoy stress-free holiday with your family:

1. Plan in advance.

Children need something to do, something that stimulates them and excites them. Just sightseeing or tagging along for a shopping trip sounds extremely boring to them. Instead make a fun experience out of the same outing. Let them lead the way for you or talk to you about where you're headed. Get them to do some research in advance and take on the role of a guide or explorer. By giving them this responsibility, you are just turning a potentially boring trip for them into a fun learning experience.

2. Set some goals

A fun way to engage the children is to sit together as a family and set some holiday goals for each of you. Make sure the goals are achievable, realistic and measurable. Set goals for yourself too and work on them everyday. When the children see you working on your goals, it inspires them to work on theirs too.

3. Encourage the children to read.

Holidays and travel are a great time to read. SoulKids books provide a wealth of wonderful stories, which not just intrigue their interest but also serve as a wonderful conversation starter. The stories in SoulKids books help you to coach and mentor your children even whilst on holiday.

The SoulKids® books support the children to earn essential life skills such as self-confidence, self-esteem, teamwork, leadership and resilience.

You will be able to relate to the stories as you travel and explain the lessons with real life situations.

For example one story teaches about seeing the good in every situation – this could apply to many situations whilst travelling.

4. Start each holiday morning on a positive note.

Switch your thinking from 'what can go wrong' to 'what an exciting new experience, I’ll make the most of it'.

This way you transmit your positivity to your children and create for them the opportunities to see positive thinking in action.

5. Remember holidays are meant for rest and rejuvenation, whilst having fun.

It is a well-deserved time-off not just for you but for the children as well. Make it your goal to create happy memories.

After all " the quality of what you do is more important than how much you do."

SoulKids was a huge success in May!!

SOULKIDS WAS A HUGE SUCCESS IN MAY!!

We had an amazing time with 23 children at SoulKids on 14/15th May at the Hollandse Club.

Children gave us some wonderful feedback about what they learnt in SoulKids …

•  I learnt to work in a team. 

•  I learnt to be patient.

•  I learnt how to be confident and open-minded.

•  I learnt to never give up on my dream.

•  I learnt that my value does not change even if someone makes fun of me.

•  I learn lots of new things - it's great fun.

•  I learnt to be happy with who I am.

•  I learnt that I should be positive because what comes around goes around.

•  It's fantastic and such fun and I learnt so much.

•  It's so lovely and I became creative and happy.

•  I felt so happy, amazing and so special.

•  I feel happy, great, positive, strong and awesome.

•  It was such a new experience. I am so happy and I made so many new friends.

•  I learnt to be positive and not negative.

•  It's SUPER fun and I left feeling amazed and cheerful.

•  I have learnt to be a leader.

•  I learnt to inspire others.

•  I want to come back every day.

Children love SoulKids and the lessons we share stay with the children as they mature in life.

"I LOVE SoulKids - it teaches things in such a FUN manner and it teaches me how to LIVE my life and how to ACT in life."

More information about SoulKids programs on www.soulkids.org

The Power of Positive Thoughts

"If you have good thoughts they will shine out of your face like sunbeams and you will always look lovely"

- Roald Dahl 

What is the best gift we can give to a child?

It is simply to be the best example that we can be.

We can only give to a child what we have inside, so if we feel loved then we can give love, if we feel happy and content, then we can give happiness.

So reflect for a moment, How happy are you? How positive are your thoughts?

Children learn by watching as well as listening, and what they see on a day to day basis becomes their reality.

So exercise your happy muscles today.

Have positive thoughts. 

In ANY situation we can always look to see a positive aspect….

It's as simple as remembering we have enough food to eat, clean water to drink, that our bodies are healthy, that we live in a safe environment….

The list is endless….

So on a daily basis - look for the things that make you smile, develop your positive thoughts and radiate like a sunbeam.

Your children will love you for being a happy you - and change will result.

Try it and see.