Is it okay to move on when things aren't working?
The other day I was having a conversation with a friend about kids sticking with things. (In this case, it was skating lessons) My friend spoke about their family values around finishing what you start, but that these lessons weren't working for her family. My friend let her son drop the skating lessons, and I really respected her flexibility when she could see it really wasn't working.
When a similar conversation came up in another group I'm in, I thought I would share some lessons that I've learned with my kids over the years.The lesson is there is no right or wrong answer and that sometimes it's okay to let them quit...and sometimes, it's good to push the perseverance.
Family values are important, and when kids want to do something that is contrary to what we believe is important, it can trigger thoughts and feelings are uncomfortable, but trust yourself. Your child know your family value whether it's not quitting, or family first, or whatever you've shown them through examples and encouragements, likely without even knowing it. If your family values are 'let's try everything, if it doesn't work move on;' then pushing to stick with things is the bigger lesson. And when you're a 'we made a commitment we stick to it' type of family, sometimes letting go is the better lesson.
This also can be applied to individual members within a family, one child may be unhealthily unable to let things go or pivot, while another picks up and drops things because of extreme FOMO.
In life, there are times to move on, and times to persevere, and learning to judge when those times are, starts when you support your kids' decisions about their activities
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