Humility is becoming an increasingly rare character trait for children to develop in our society. Many children were raised in front of screens with social media platforms being a normal thing for them. They watch their friends post pictures of themselves, brag about their daily escapades, and create a larger-than-life personality that doesn’t truly exist. Eventually, children begin to place too much value on the number of people who like their photos. They become fixated on curating a life that photographs well for their friends, but they never learn humility.

Teaching children not to value themselves more highly than they ought to can feel like an arduous task. As the digital age progresses, the upcoming generation is growing inflated egos and grandiose self-esteem that can be quickly shattered on social media. Instead, we need to start following a few simple steps to instill humility now.

Bring your child’s attention to other people.

The digital age encourages children to only think about themselves. However, our constant praise of their individuality makes them feel as if they are superior to everyone around them. Parents can start to foster a sense of humility in their children by bringing their attention to others. For example, try pointing out someone else who does a great job on something. This forces your child to think beyond themselves and start to recognize the achievements of others.

Teach your children about self-worth.

Most children believe that their self-worth is accurately determined by their status online. Adults know that this isn’t true. Self-worth should be determined by your character traits, achievements, strengths, and passions. There are far more important things than which filter you put on your latest profile picture. Parents need to start emphasizing and teaching their kids at an early age where self-worth actually comes from. Give children specific examples of how they excel and why those areas are important.

Discuss how to handle being wrong.

One of the common problems in the digital age is that all of our mistakes are available for everyone to see. Every child is bound to have a moment that warrants a public apology sooner or later. A great way to teach children the importance of humility is to talk about what it means to apologize in such a public forum. How do you phrase your apology and respond to the feedback of others? These are important lessons that can apply both now and well into the future.

Teach them the value of teamwork.  

The reason that ego can thrive so well in the digital age is that children are encouraged to be independent. We are far more focused on achievement and competition than we are with encouraging one another. Set up opportunities for children to serve others in the community or to participate in a project that requires teamwork. This simple action forces them to think beyond themselves and develop a humbler approach.

Cultivating humility can be quite an undertaking in this digital age. It is more difficult than ever before for children to look beyond themselves. Parents and teachers can do their part to encourage a humble mindset by discussing these important life lessons. It will take consistency to see the desired result, but you should begin to recognize a child who can easily see beyond their own needs and desires.