It's Not Fair [Parenting Tip]

"It's Not Fair."
-Chick Moorman and Thomas Haller

by Chick Moorman and Thomas Haller

"It's not fair" is a common childhood complaint. Parents hear it all the
time.

"How come I didn't get any? It's not fair."

"He got more than I did. It's not fair."

"You let her stay up later. That's not fair."

How do you respond when your child tells you, "It's not fair"? Do you
race around attempting to make sure everything is perceived as fair? Are
you on guard to make sure that love, gifts, attention, and privileges
are doled out evenly in your family? If so, you might be doing your
children a disservice. Here's why.

When your children use "It's not fair" language, they are assuming the
victim stance. They are activating a core belief that life should be
fair at all times, and when it isn't, they feel unjustly treated.

In reality, life is not fair. Two people can be speeding down the
highway and only one gets a ticket. Two people can be exposed to the
same virus and only one gets sick. The reality of life is that fairness
is not applied to everyone at all times. Life simply doesn't unfold that
way. To allow our children to expect otherwise is to set them up for
reoccurring disappointment and frustration.
The "It's not fair" cry is an outgrowth of a faulty assumption that all
children should be treated equally. If you buy into that myth, you set
yourself up for constant complaints and hassles.

Please do not attempt to be equal and fair to all your children at all
times. If you do, you are setting yourself up for manipulation. Once
children know that you're trying to be fair and attempting to set things
up so everything looks even, they can then use your positive intention
to plead their case, manipulate you, and encourage you to feel guilty.

Trying to make things equal for children will cause a lot of pain for
everyone involved. Even if you manage to parcel everything out in equal
portions, those portions still won't look equal through the eyes of your
children.

Aim for equity rather than for equality. Equity means that all children
have comparable opportunities to be loved and appreciated and to have
their needs met. Equity does not mean that all children are treated the
same way. As you know, no two children are the same, and there's no
reasonable rationale for treating them as if they were.

For example, your older child may wear glasses, while your younger child
does not. If you treated them the same, both would have to wear glasses.
But the youngest one doesn't need glasses and the older one does! Your
youngest child, however, does need braces, while the other one's teeth
are perfectly straight. So the youngest child gets braces. The older
gets glasses. The only thing you need to guarantee your children is that
they will each have opportunities to get their needs met.

Recently, a father we know bought his daughter a volleyball net, poles,
and ball. He brought nothing home for his son.

His daughter asked, "What do I get these for?"

"Since you're going to volleyball camp and trying to make the varsity
this year, I thought you might need them," her father replied.

"What did you get Austin?"

"Nothing."

"How come?"

"Austin isn't trying to make the varsity. Later, when he needs
something, he'll get it. Different people have different needs. Right
now it seemed like you needed these."

Next time you hear "That's not fair," explain to your children that
you're not attempting to treat them equally. Tell them, "Different
people have different needs." Say, "I address needs. I don't try to be
fair or make things even. Tell me what you need, and we'll talk about
seeing if we can make it happen for you."

"Fair" means more than everyone doing the same thing the same way at the
same time. "Fair" means everyone getting what they need when they need
it.

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