Superhero parents

In my social circle there is a psychological challenge faced almost universally by our kids: Mom and Dad make every amazing outcome look automatic and effortless. We are not consciously trying to deceive our kids, but we do deep down like the fact that they think we make success look easy.

Your mistakes present an opportunity to show your kids a foundational truth of life: human beings are full of nuance, neither wholly good nor wholly bad.

If we want to inhabit a society of graciousness, we need to raise our kids to avoid pigeonholing people (including themselves) as bad on the basis of an imperfection or mistake. Admitting our mistakes to our kids helps them understand how common it is for good people to make mistakes, because Mom and Dad are the original good people in every kid's life.