Laura HackelAs a mom, you have the power to raise children who will have a positive influence in the world. Your success as a mom is already rigged in your favor, as you were divinely chosen to mother your children. You already have everything you need inside of you, no matter what is happening around you.It is a matter of getting in touch with your Mom GPS, an internal navigation system that is already working for you – one that will help you support your children through any transition.These three mistakes can get in the way. Even great moms make them.So, here we go . . .

Mistake #1 – Looking for validation from others

Ahh…I see this so often, and I did it too.I was so nervous about making the “right” decisions that I would share my plan with my brother, friends, hairdresser, and ask what they thought about it. I was looking for others to tell me my plan would work, because I didn’t yet trust my own decision-making.Instead of getting validation, my conversations created overwhelm and confusion.I only created more stress for myself and a layer of confusion between me and my Mom GPS.

Mistake #2 – Feeling like you need to take unsolicited advice

You are out to coffee with a friend and sharing what’s up in your life and she begins to tell you EXACTLY what you SHOULD do! You are uncertain, so you begin to think she’s right. After all, it worked for her.Something in your gut tells you it’s not going to work. But it’s too late, you have already connected to the energy of that other person’s “Shoulds,” and they’re blocking you from feeling good about your own choice.When I chose to support my son Alex with his skiing career when he was just 14 years old, almost everyone around me said some version of:“You’re crazy to send your son to a ski academy, he won’t be able to make a living skiing.”Turns out they were wrong. Today at 22 years old, he’s a professional freestyle skier who gets paid to do what he loves. 

Mistake #3 – Desire to fit in and be accepted

You know in your heart exactly what your child needs from you, but everyone around you is guiding their children in a different way, leaving you feeling trapped by society’s expectations.My two youngest sons are dyslexic, and homework was a STRUGGLE to say the least. They had already spent six hours a day in school doing something they weren’t good at, and then expected to do some more. Would you do that? I know I wouldn’t.Yet, they would come home every day with more homework and every time I would bring it up with the teacher, I would get “that’s the way it is.”It wasn’t until I gave up caring about “what the teacher (expert) thought” that I was able to put together a plan. My sons would spend 20 minutes on each of their three subjects and if they weren’t done, they would stop. It made a HUGE difference in our house. You are the expert for your children. And to best support them, yourself and the world, be in total acceptance of yourself first. 

About the Author: Laura Hackel is founder of