SUGGESTIONS FOR BUILDING ASSETS

Asset # 37- Personal Power

(Young people believe that they have control over the direction of their life) 

To Build Asset # 37 Parents and Extended Family Can . . .

*Speak about ways your own life has unfolded because of the choices you have made. Talk about the positive and negative choices and lessons learned. Talk about things you did not have control over, too.

* Give your child age-appropriate tasks to complete. This way your child can learn that he can accomplish things and be more likely to try new things later.

* Whenever you can safely give your child a choice, do so. Let your kids experience the rewards and punishments for things that they had a role in making happen.

* With your children, make up a safety plan that each one can do without the help of an adult in case of an emergency.

* Honor your child's personal boundaries, so they learn they have control over their body.

* Teach them about personal safety, including practicing different ways of handling exploitive situations.

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 45% of youth surveyed by Search Institute have this asset in their lives.*

*Based on Search Institute surveys of almost 100,000 6th to 12th grade youth throughout the United States

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"Go confidently in the direction of your dreams. Live the life you have imagined." -Henry David Thoreau

"Whether you believe you can do a thing or not, you are right." -Henry Ford