Affirmations for Homeschooling Parents

EP190: Feeling overwhelmed by self-doubt and comparison as a homeschooling parent? Discover how the power of affirmations can transform your mindset and empower you to become a more confident, effective educator for your children. We all know that negative thoughts can sabotage our efforts. But by embracing affirmations, we can reinforce our commitments and core values. Learn how decisiveness and commitment, inspired by the wisdom of Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, can help you stay true to your choices amidst the chaos of social media’s impact on mental health and your own self-doubts. Don't miss out on this episode packed with practical advice and heartfelt encouragement.

Find the Show Notes Here (www.artofhomeschooling.com/episode190)

Taproot Teacher Training (www.artofhomeschooling.com/taproot)

Inspired at Home Membership (www.artofhomeschooling.com/inspiredathome)

Chapters

• 0:09 Empowering Homeschooling Parents With Affirmations
• 10:51 Building Connections Through Homeschooling

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:09

You're listening to the Art of Homeschooling podcast, where we help parents cultivate creativity and connection at home. I'm your host, jean Miller, and here on this podcast you'll find stories and inspiration to bring you the confidence you need to make homeschooling work for your family. Let's begin. Why is it that, as parents, we are so often second-guessing ourselves, wondering if we've made the best decisions, if we're doing enough, if we're getting it right, when what we really need is to shore up our resolve, gather resources that will support us and tap into our deepest trust? Whether this is our first or fourth or 10th year of homeschooling, these negative thoughts inside our heads not only make us feel crazy, but also undermine our enormous efforts to bring the best to our children and families. There are so many mindset tools that we can tap into, but one of my favorite is affirmations or positive statements that can help you overcome negative thoughts and self-doubt, especially in the midst of stress or challenges. Affirmations are not magic cures or a transcending panacea to everything, but they are a self-help tool that's handy to have in your back pocket, and in modern life, we need all the tools we can get, all the tools we can gather, to help balance our lives and emotions. For me, self-doubt, stress, overwhelm or indecision are usually a sign of spiritual unrest. I have somehow forgotten that I am not alone. I am never alone. Back in my homeschooling days, it was that I'd forgotten. I felt called to spend my days with my children. Forgotten that the arts-infused, waldorf-inspired curriculum called to me because it's healing for us all. Even now, after all my years of homeschooling, I can still get stuck in comparison mode With all of our access to seeing snippets of others' lives on social media snippets of others' lives on social media. It's so easy to make up stories about everyone else doing so well out there, while I'm over here in my little corner of the world making a mess of things. This comparisonitis, as I like to call it, is clearly not helping, nor is it healthy. Newsflash the US Surgeon General, has even issued a warning about social media and mental health. If you want to read more about this, check out this summary. I'll put a link in the show notes a summary of Dr Vivek Murthy's recent New York Times opinion piece why I'm Calling for a Warning label on social media platforms. It has some great suggestions for us as parents, and it is also a good reminder of how we can take better care of ourselves around social media.

Speaker 1: 3:36

The struggle is real, my friends. Even for us as homeschooling parents, affirmations can really help to remind us of our values and what's most important to us in our lives. Just simple truths for us to remember. Here are some simple truths that you may have forgotten.

Speaker 1: 3:58

We all have good days and bad days, clean sinks and dirty sinks and bad days, clean sinks and dirty sinks, cooperative children and saucy children. We all wonder sometimes why we chose this over that and think that would be so much easier. And what's wrong with me? We all want it all right now. So much of the comparison. Unrest, judgment and lack of confidence is really just taking place inside our own heads. So let's offer up some alternative thoughts. We can do that through affirmations, and I'm going to get there in just a minute.

Speaker 1: 4:39

If we want the chatter to stop, we need to be bold and decisive and commit to the choices we've made. We need to choose again and again this life we're living and embrace it, and then just get on with it. These beautiful words, this poem by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, says it all. Here we go Until one's committed. There is hesitancy, the chance to draw back always ineffectiveness. Concerning all acts of initiative and creation, there is one elementary truth, the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then providence moves too. All sorts of things occur to help one that would never otherwise have occurred. A whole stream of events issue from the decision raising in one's favor all manner of unforeseen incidents and meetings, and material assistance which no person could have dreamt would have come his or her way. Whatever you can do or dream, you can begin it. Boldness has genius, power and magic in it. Begin it now. This is where affirmations can come in. They really help us remember our commitments that we've made.

Speaker 1: 6:09

I like to choose one affirmation to be my companion for a while, for a bit of time. Write it on a piece of paper and carry it with me in my pocket. Add it to the front of my planner, write it on a post-it note and stick it to my bathroom mirror so that I can see it first thing every morning. Here are some possible affirmations for homeschooling parents. Feel free to choose one of these affirmations or take one to spark your own ideas. I choose homeschooling for this year. I choose these imperfect children and young adults who are in my sphere of care and influence. I choose this life partner. Remember it's a package deal. I choose to be the best mother, spouse, friend, sister, daughter that I can be and forgive myself when I fall short. These affirmations can help you in your day-to-day life. Just remember what's most important to you and help you come back to those core values that you hold so dear. Here are a few more words of wisdom from Goethe. Think about homeschooling as you listen, to help you embrace how to be a more decisive parent.

Speaker 1: 7:37

I have come to the frightening conclusion that I am the decisive element. It is my personal approach that creates the climate. It is my daily mood that makes the weather. I possess tremendous power to make life miserable or joyous. I can humiliate or humor, hurt or heal. In all situations, it is my response that decides whether a crisis is escalated or de-escalated and a person is humanized or dehumanized. This quote was shared with everyone in my training to become a Simplicity Parenting Family Life Coach, and I find it to be an inspiring reminder of my role in my family. If you haven't read the book Simplicity Parenting by Kim John Payne, I highly recommend it. It's one of my all-time favorite parenting books so reassuring and full of comforting stories as well as practical strategies to help us in raising our children, so that we can become a more decisive parent.

Speaker 1: 8:48

In wrapping up this episode, I want to acknowledge that this time of year I'm recording this and it's the month of July, and July is often a time when all of this comes to a head. We think summer is going to be relaxing, when in reality, by midsummer, this big summer energy wave comes crashing down and we can find ourselves drenched in self-doubt and indecision. When I was in the midst of homeschooling my three kiddos, it was often precipitated by trying to balance summer homeschool planning with summer activities. Now, these days, I find my energy going toward planning and preparing for the Taproot Teacher Training. It's a homeschool training retreat that I organize and host, along with my mentor, barbara, and an incredible team of expert homeschoolers. I'm trying to juggle my art of homeschooling business, my husband, my grown kiddos, my aging mother, yard work and my garden, along with my joyful anticipation of, and preparing for, taproot. It's a lot, believe me.

Speaker 1: 10:00

At Taproot this year, our focus is tapping into your flow, finding your flow, and affirmations are such a simple tool to help us connect with ourselves, our place in the universe and our very important roles in our families. I hope these ideas about affirmations have resonated with you. Be sure to check out the show notes for more resources you might want to dig into, including episode 30, encouragement for Moms, and episode 80, homeschooling Mantras. You can find the show notes at artofhomeschoolingcom slash episode 190. And if you're feeling intrigued by an in-person transformational experience for homeschooling parents, find out more about the Taproot teacher training in the show notes as well.

Speaker 1: 10:51

We'd love to have you. It's our 18th year putting on an amazing homeschool training and retreat weekend here in Northern Ohio. Until next week, know that you have the tremendous power to make life joyous for yourself, your loved ones and the world. See you next time. That's all for today, my friend, but here's what I want you to remember Rather than perfection, let's focus on connection. Thanks so much for listening and I'll see you on the next episode of the Art of Homeschooling podcast.