I had the honor to spend two days with Anne Beiler, founder of Auntie Anne’s Pretzels.

“Role modeling is the highest form of teaching.” Dr. Richard Dobbins

So I began to reflect over the past few days as to what that looked like. What was my parenting style?

Growing up, it was all about colors, shapes, numbers, and letters. But now, it’s life equations that must be taught. And it doesn’t come from only words. You can’t understand the depth of humanity without actions.

So of course, here I am pondering how I’m serving them as a mom, their teacher. The question I kept coming back to was, “How am I teaching my children especially now that they’re older?”

Since the move, I have not volunteered much. Partly because I was getting my feet on the ground in a new area and it just wasn’t the right time. But it’s always been apart of my life. I miss volunteering and giving of my time and talents.

How are you role modeling to your child? And it doesn’t even have to be a child. You can be a role to anyone at any age.

I think about my mom and dad as role models. Influencers have the greatest effect by role modeling.

Think about how you are a role model.

• at home
• at church
• at work
• at the grocery store
• at the games (football, soccer, etc.)
• on the road
• at the gym
• at the bank

So how do you teach through role modeling?

The K.I.S.S. ~ Show ‘n Tell!

Your actions speak louder than words. What you do matters. It’s all about what you see is what you get.

1. Show your expectations in actions. You have to show up and model what you want to see in your children. They can’t know what they can’t see.
2. Model the expectations daily. Build consistency. If you want change a habit, you have to practice it on a consistent basis. It takes practice to make progress.
3. Tell the lessons and principles. This will give you the opportunity to emphasize what you want them to comprehend with the use of words. Have you ever watched how your child tunes you out after a few minutes?

Just because you’re an adult, doesn’t give you a pass to do whatever you want to do. You have a responsibility.

You have be a role model.