In Nelson Mandela's 1994 Inaugural Speech, he instructs us to be brilliant, successful, talented, and fabulous. Do your kids lack the self-discipline to become such a person? Are you uncomfortable showing them the way? Would you like to know how to instill self-discipline? Here's 3 ways to help your kids be the fabulous people they were meant to be.

Build Character with Chores

First, start giving your children age appropriate chores. Perhaps, when they're 3 years old, they'll start putting their toys away. Maybe they'll get dressed with some help or empty their bath water. As they get older, teach them to set the table, sweep, dust, and help fix meals. By the time they're nine they can wash and dry clothes, take out the garbage, start dinner and much, much more. You are teaching them to take care of themselves, a valuable skill for life. You are teaching them self-discipline too.

Build Character with Earning Power

Second, teach your kids to earn what they want. If you smother your children with material things today, you'll be creating the gripers, groaners, and grumblers of tomorrow. They'll grow up thinking the world owes them. Do your kids a favor now. Let them earn what they want. Give them a feeling of accomplishment. You'll be teaching self-discipline too.

Build Character with Goals

Third, teach them to create and achieve goals. Goals take consistent effort. Having a goal without effort is like having a front porch without steps. Coach your children to create and climb the stairs step by step. If your child wants to be the pitcher on the baseball team, encourage your child to practice. If your child wants to pass to the next level in gymnastics, encourage your child to practice. If your child wants to learn multiplication tables, encourage your child to practice. The steps to achieving goals takes practice, practice, practice. When you coach your children to achieve their goals, you help them make their dreams come true. You are teaching them self-discipline too.

When children take care of themselves through chores, they build character. When children earn the things they want, they build character. When children create and achieve goals, they build character. With character, they become brilliant, successful, talented and fabulous, all because you led the way.

Jean Tracy

Jean Tracy, MSS "Granny Jean" helps parents, teachers and counselors, raise awesome kids with solid characters. She graduated from Seattle University with a degree in education. She taught elementary school in Washington, California, and Connecticut.

Inspired by her desire to help the problem children in her classes, Jean returned to graduate school. She earned a Masters Degree in Social Work from Bryn Mawr College in Pennsylvania. Upon returning to her home in Washington State, she worked as a probation officer and then developed a private counseling practice with families and children that spanned 22 years. During this time she earned a Diplomate in Clinical Social Work.

When asked how she developed her parenting books and products, she tells a unique story. "When I was an intern counselor in an old elementary school in Pennsylvania, I shared my office with the janitor under the stairwell. When the bell rang, the children's pounding footsteps drowned out every counseling session I ever had. The office itself had buckets, mops, and assorted cans lining the walls. The light bulb overhead swung back and forth casting creepy shadows everywhere. My counseling tools were broken down toys in a huge vinyl bag. Those toys never seemed a good way to counsel kids.

When I started my counseling practice, I looked for better skills to understand the kids I counseled. Over the years I developed fun ways to communicate with kids, to help parents help their own kids, and build character too. My unique parenting books and products are the result."

Jean Tracy, "Granny Jean" is a wife, mother, and grandmother. She is also an award-winning Distinguished Toastmaster and professional speaker. Her presentations, include:

1. Build Character Now! Practical Tools for Busy Parents 2. Discipline Styles, 3 to Lose and 1 to Choose 3. Family Meetings: This Special Formula Builds Character 4. Teach Your Child Success! 1 Simple Formula, 3 Easy Steps

Granny Jean's presentations are full of stories and interactive activities that will help you as parents, teachers, and counselors build solid character in your awesome children.