Respond Vs. React

There’s a big difference between reacting and responding to others. In parenting, we do a whole lot of reacting simply because of the nature of just how fast it all seems to happen.

The trick is to catch yourself when you can, before you react. To pause and then respond.

Reactions happen without the pause, without any thought at all. They’re instinctual and habitual. Often, they’re based on past experiences, a deep-seated fear or a (sometimes false) sense of urgency.

Responses, on the flip side, are thoughtful. They reflect your values and typically the way you want to be and how you want to model behaving, more accurately.

Is it hard to respond vs react? Heck, yeah.

Can you do it? Sure you can. Maybe not all the time, but certainly more often. Take a breath, take that pause and then . . . respond.