First things first, you should probably know that there are a couple of things that are more important as a parent for you to employ in raising your kids. You probably need to raise kids with some other things apart from the skills of constituency. Kids, of course would need to live in an environment that would give them the clam assurance of love. Therefore, they would need to live in a predictable environment. This is to give them the feeling of security that they need for a healthy mental and physical development, This consistency is a result of routines and schedules along with rules and regulations that serve to inject an air of normalcy to the kids’ lives.

If a kid is exposed to the dangers of inconsistency, when rules are put forward one day, enforced the next, and then totally forgotten or abandoned the other day, the kids are easily confused. In such a case, it becomes increasingly difficult to control those kinds of kids and that is where the problem lies.
Now ask yourself:

am I an inconsistent parent? Of course, your first reply might be a strong no., but think a lot more on it before you proffer your reply. Inconsistency is something people often do not think of.

Are you the kind of parent that makes rules, and then when they are broken, you sometimes let the kids off the hook without doing anything about it?

Are you the kind of parent to deny a request, but after some time, finally go back on your earlier word to change your initial reply? If you answered positively to any of the above two scenarios, then you are definitely an inconsistent parent.

If you have been inconsistent for quite a while, then you would need a lot of discipline and patience to revert to being a consistent one.

What are the kinds of consistency that a parent may exhibit? Well, first of all a parent could be consistent in laying down rules, as mentioned above. To do this, you would need to first explain the rules and regulations to your kids carefully, and tell them the consequences for breaking the rule. Ensure that you constantly enforce each rule every time. And that means EVERY TIME.

There is the kind of consistency that you can give to the child as a parent. You would need your kids to see that you are united in the set of rules and regulations. Therefore, when you lay down a set of rules and regulations, your spouse must understand them so that they are enforced by both of you. This is because if only one parent is enforcing a rule, it boils down to the same thing – inconsistency in parenting.

Also there should be consistency in routines in the home. You might want to formulate a routine for a kid. Contrary to what you think, kids love and prefer a routine kind of life.