The relationship you have with your child is one of the most important and precious relationships of your life. Think of it as an account. The more you put in, the bigger the rewards. But you have to be careful about making too many withdrawals. In order to build a rock-solid relationship with your child that can weather the storms of life, focus on making lots of daily deposits that build trust and show love.

Steven R. Covey, best-selling author of The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Families, first coined the metaphor Emotional Bank Account. He said, “By proactively doing things that build trust in a relationship, one makes ‘deposits’. Conversely, by reactively doing things that decrease trust, one makes ‘withdrawals’. The current ‘balance’ in the emotional bank account, will determine how well two people can communicate and problem-solve together.”�