Attitudes of optimism, of "let them be", and of joy in watching and helping another life develop and blossom will help parents relish their parenting role and will provide the resilience necessary to navigate turbulent times.

Parents should be able to develop goals about the type of parents they want to be.

The best way for parents to go about acquiring a mind-set of self-reflective parenting will be different for different individuals. Some people will find that they are already very close to being the parent they are striving to be. Other people will find reading books or blog articles to be very helpful and some other people might benefit most by engaging in discussions on the internet.

Spending time with the child or adolescent in mutually enjoyable activities on a regular basis will help to build warmth and trust.

Parents typically don't talk to each other about their goals and attitudes to parenting but this type of conversation could be very useful for helping parents become clearer about the things that are important to them.

One of the most important goals to have may well be the goal to create the life you want without preventing other people from creating the life they want.

A parenting program should focus on parent's attitudes to themselves, their children, and the relationships they are building with their children.