Walk Your Talk
Is about you being congruent between what you say and what you do. Actions speak much louder than words.
I have a Native American friend, Strong Eagle. This is the main message he tries to get across to the kids with which he works. He takes them on survival retreats, usually to Big Bend National Park. While he teaches them about survival and how to walk softly on the land, his deeper message is about them walking their talk.
Walking Your Talk on a broader perspective is about knowing your Truth and living it. You don't have to go so philosophically deep, and can stick with it on the level of congruence between what you say and what you do in regards to your troubled teen.
| Horse Tip: One of the therapeutic things horses do really well is mirror back a teens incongruence. Horse pick this up by incongruence between body language and action. If a horse can do it, a teen (or child) certainly can and will. |
This goes back to YOU, the parent are
initially the primary role model for your teen. So if you say do one
thing, but your do another, which do you think your teen is going to
do--what you say or what you do?
Parenting Basics Index:
Top Horse: Who's the Parent?
Walk Your Talk
Consistency
Co-Parenting
Divorced or Separated Co-Parenting
Single Parenting
Assertiveness
Feeling Safe
Because I Say So
Accountability
Communication: basic listening skills
Communication: non-verbals
Being Real and Authentic