As a coach, I help people change their thoughts. Most of the work I do is undoing years of thinking that isn’t serving people. For years I have helped adults find their way to more empowering, positive, confident, and productive, mindsets. I spent a lot of that time wondering what it would be like if we didn’t have to!
After becoming a mother I have been able to use that question to set my daughter up for success. What if we didn’t have to undo years of negative, skewed, or defeatist thinking? What if we could empower them from the start? These 5 books are the beginning of my answer to that question. I hope you enjoy them as much as we have!
1) Incredible You! 10 Ways to let your greatness shine through by Dr. Wayne W. Dyer
Dr Wayne W. Dyer has taken then 10 concepts from his book for adults “10 Secrets for Success & Inner Peace” and interpreted them for children, creating “Incredible You”! Wayne believes that it’s
never too early for children to know that they’re unique and powerful beings, and they have everything they need within themselves to create happy, successful lives.
With this book, parents can introduce these important ideas to their children. The ten concepts are numbered, titled and set in rhyming verse, and vibrant illustrations bring each point to life. At the end, there are questions that kids can answer to connect these ideas to their own lives, and make them realize how incredible they truly are.
2) On My Way To A Happy Life by Deepak Chopra
What if you could teach your children 7 lessons that would help them on their way to a happy and successful life? With Deepak Chopra’s On My Way to a Happy Life, you can do just that!
The ideas found inside this book are the the most timeless laws of the universe, presented in the simplest of terms for young children. When kids understand the way the world works from a spiritual point of view, it makes it easier for them to navigate through it with joy and love and happiness.
3) Tiger-Tiger, Is It True?: Four Questions to Make You Smile Again by Byron Katie
Tiger-Tiger, Is It True? is a story about a little tiger who thinks that his whole world is falling apart: his parents don’t love him, his friends have abandoned him, and life is unfair. But a wise turtle asks him four questions, and everything changes. He realizes that all his problems are not caused by things, but by his thoughts about things; and that when he questions his thoughts, life becomes wonderful again. This is a heartwarming story with a powerful message that can
transform the lives of even very young children.
This is the children’s version of Byron Katie’s revolutionary adult book, Loving What Is: Four Questions That Can Change Your Life. The Work is simply four questions that, when applied to a specific problem, enable you to see what is troubling you in an entirely different light. As Katie says, “It’s not the problem that causes our suffering; it’s our thinking about the problem.” Contrary to popular belief, trying to let go of a painful thought never works; instead, once we have done The Work, the thought lets go of us.
4) Listening with My Heart: A story of kindness and self-compassion by Gabi Garcia
Kindness matters! Especially to ourselves.
We talk to kids a lot about how to be friends to others. Not much about how to be friends to themselves.
Yet, positive self-talk and self-acceptance help build emotional resilience, happiness and well-being.
Along with Esperanza, your child can learn the importance of being a friend to ourselves! This beautiful book also touches on the universal themes of friendship, empathy and kindness. Includes mindfulness and self-compassion activities.
A wonderful addition to any home or school library! Free resources to accompany this book can be found at http://bit.ly/gabigarciabooksheart.
5) I Think, I Am!: Teaching Kids the Power of Affirmations by Louise Hay:
“Your thoughts create your life!” This is the message that Louise Hay has been teaching people throughout the world for more than 27 years. Now, children can learn and understand the powerful idea that they have control over their thoughts and words, and in turn, what happens in their life.
Within the pages of I Think, I Am! kids will find out the difference between negative thoughts and positive affirmations. Fun illustrations and simple text demonstrate how to make the change 
from negative thoughts and words to those that are positive. The happiness and confidence that come from this ability is something children will carry with them their entire lives!
Children take their cues from us, and if we follow these mindful ways, they will too. I highly recommend reading the adult versions of the books you get for your kids, so that you can be on the same page. Using the tools, resources, and the same language, can help the whole family. Don’t be surprised if your little ones start guiding you when you are negative, and showing you how it’s done.
These kinds of positive mindset foundations will serve them for their entire lives and they will thank you for the effort when they realize just how much of a difference it made.