Did you ever wonder how your upbringing compares to your peers? Perhaps you’ve heard stories that you simply just can’t empathize with because you’ve never been in that situation. While we all grow up in different households, it’s very clear that some people just had a better childhood. Do any of these ring true for you? If so, your upbringing was definitely better than you thought!
1. You parent like your parents did.
When we become parents, we draw on our own experience. For some, that means outright avoiding everything their own parents did. Others fall back on familiar habits and relish the chance to raise their children the way they were raised themselves. If you catch yourself in a déjà vu moment, realizing you’re parroting your own mom or dad’s words to your kids, and you feel good about it, you’ve already won.
2. Your needs were always met.
Most children don’t need much, but they do need the solid basics: a shelter, food, and clothing. If you can remember always having these three necessities, you’re already ahead of the game. With so many children going without food and shelter, growing up in poverty — about a billion around the world, according to UNICEF — they are essentials you tend to take for granted.
3. You’re a hard worker.
One of the basics parents should instill in children is that in order to succeed, you must be willing to put in the work. If you’re willing to get up every morning and hit the ground running, whether you work a 9 to 5 office job, or you’re self-employed, that means you’re driven and that comes from a healthy upbringing.
4. You were disciplined.
Discipline doesn’t equate to abuse, physical or otherwise, that’s an entirely different conversation. Rather, true discipline means bearing the consequences for your actions. If your parents disciplined you with the goal of teaching you right from wrong, you’re bound to take those lessons with you into adulthood. We all make mistakes, it’s how you learn from them and move forward that truly matters.
5. You know how to communicate.
Communication is something so many people struggle with. Some are like open books and don’t mind sharing what they’re feeling at any given time. Others are closed off and tend to keep things closer to the chest. If you’re an open book or a healthy balance between the two, you can likely attribute that to your upbringing. Your parents probably encouraged you to speak your mind and listened to you when you did. If you do this with your own children, or those in your life, you’ll be surprised at how much they confide in you.
6. You encourage learning and explanation.
Life is full of challenges and new information, and you’d be remiss not to take it all in! If you have a love of learning and exploration, and you pass this on to your children, or even encourage others to step outside of their comfort zone, you can consider yourself open to all the possibilities life has to offer.
7. You can easily express your feelings.
Expressing your emotions puts you in a vulnerable place; it’s not an easy thing to do. However, if you can easily open up about what you’re feeling, that means you were taught that it’s okay to feel, whether it’s happiness, sadness, anger, or any mix of those and more. It’s always good to let your emotions out. Otherwise, they tend to bottle up and come out at the most inopportune time.
8. You respect people’s personal boundaries.
Everyone has different comfort levels and they set their own personal boundaries. If you’re respectful of these and don’t brush it off as someone being overly cautious or extreme, chances are you learned this in your childhood and carried it over. As a parent, it’s so critical to teach your children that not everyone is okay with unsolicited hugs, for example, or try to force the matter.
9. You look forward to the holidays.
If the holidays spark nostalgia, you can count yourself among the fortunate. Do you think of hot cocoa by the fireplace on Christmas, or perhaps think back to all the fun you had trick or treating in your neighborhood on Halloween? Maybe you still get together and carry out annual traditions with your family — these are all things that indicate you had a pleasant childhood, especially if you revisit the memories often.
10. You always knew you were loved.
One of the best things that parents can do for their children is to show and tell them that they are loved. Even if they’re not the affectionate or cuddly type, there are many ways to display acts of love. It’s showing up at school events or a dance recital, it’s making sure they have the essentials at home, or spending time together on the weekend instead of cozying up with a device. People who know they’re loved tend to be more well-rounded for the most part.
11. Your parents encouraged your individuality.
There’s nothing worse than hearing “why can’t you be more like so-and-so?” Individuality is such a gift and it’s one we have that’s inherent. If your parents encouraged you to be unapologetically you and not conform to standards, be sure to thank them. People who are encouraged to be themselves tend to be more self-fulfilled and happier in the long run.
12. You were taught to be humble.
Being humble this doesn’t mean that you can’t quietly celebrate your successes or accomplishments. Rather, it’s a lack of arrogance. You know you worked for something, so to you, it’s nothing that you need to throw in someone else’s face. Humble people tend to raise others up, and there’s nothing negative about that at all.
13. You know how to address adversity.
We all face adversity at different stages in our life. It’s how we handle these situations when they crop up that truly defines us. If you’re one who tackles adversity head-on, without putting others down, it’s likely you had a great example to look up to. In some instances, it’s okay to avoid adversity, too. If you’re in a no-win situation where addressing the issue won’t help, it’s okay to make that choice to walk away.
14. You know it’s okay to disagree.
Speaking of walking away, sometimes you’re just not going to see eye-to-eye with someone. It happens to all of us. If rather than try to force your viewpoint on someone else, you decide that it’s okay to see someone else’s perspective without necessarily agreeing with it, pat yourself on the back. It’s a very difficult thing to do, but it’s admirable at the same time.
15. You regularly visit childhood vacation spots.
Do you have a family vacation spot that you look back on fondly? If you do, and you’ve continued to make the trip to that destination occasionally to this day, you can thank your parents or guardians for instilling that love in you. Family vacations are such a great way to bond and spend time together without the stressors of real life knocking on your door. That’s why so many children remember them, because it’s a period in time where you could just be.
16. Your parents encouraged you to follow your passion.
Discovering and following a passion is something everyone should do. It’s what drives us and it’s always a good idea to make a career of it, if you can. Think about it, when you go to work, are you fully happy that you’re there or is it something you just do because you have to, well, pay the bills? The drive to follow our passion is instilled in us from childhood. It comes from a positive source who tells us to find what makes us happy and seek that happiness.
17. You’re a well-rounded person.
We all have different definitions of what makes a person well-rounded, but someone who is well-rounded has the versatility to adapt to unique situations in their life, even if they come out of the blue. They know how to keep their emotions in check, has engaged in a variety of life experiences, and has a well-adjusted personality to boot.
Enjoy this piece? Give it a like and follow PsychLove on MSN for more!
