Every child is different and unique. Each child has its own needs, demands, habits, and routine. Some children like to wake up early, others might like to sleep till late; some might like milk and curd, others might not. Comparing your child to other children is the last thing that should be on your mind as a parent.
Honestly, the comparison is inevitable.
While I say we should never compare our children to others, it is next to impossible. When we see other kids of the same age group around us, we tend to ask their parents about what they eat, how they sleep, their activities, and other development parameters.
For e.g. in my case, I have a nephew who is 5 months younger than my baby. So we keep comparing both of them and expect my nephew to react to things similar to how my baby did at that age. But that's now how it works. He and Raag are completely different. While Raag giggling and laughing loudly at 4.5 months, he has just started doing that when he is 5.5 months old. Raag, at 10 months, is 9 kgs whereas my nephew at 5.5 months weighs 8 kgs. My nephew has a lot of body hair while Raag has minimal.
Both the babies have one bloodline common (of my parents) but yet they are so different. So imagine when there are no common bloodlines and we expect the child to behave similarly.
As parents, we must understand that our child is unique, special, and skilled in his own way. They will learn things at their own pace, react basis their judgement and intellect and do things how they like (not how we like). When we compare our children to others, we are actually putting a lot of pressure on them to do things beyond their capability. This pressure keeps building on the child, some are able to perform while others are not. And when they don't perform, there is a feeling of disappointment.
As parents, it's our first job to understand our children and respect who they are. It's our child afterall and will do things that match our behaviour and personality. We must allow them enough time to find out their personality and discover who they are, what they want to do in life. Putting pressure on them hides their real self and makes them into a person we want to see, not who they actually are.
So dear parents, respect and understand your child's behaviour, attitude and encourage them in what they want to do. That's how you will be a good parent.
