How to Stop My Teen From Being Annoying
Although it's typical for teenagers to have bouts of annoying or disrepectful behavior, such as eye rolling, back talking, scornful sneers and under-the-breath mumbling, it's important to nip these behaviors early on before they establish any lifelong traits, according to "Stopping the Back Talk," an article published in Good Housekeeping Magazine. While picking your battles is recommended, it's important to avoid setting the tone that your teen's annoying behavior is acceptable. When parents refuse to tolerate annoying behavior, it's unlikely they will have a rude teenager.
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Instructions
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Call your teen out for the annoying behavior as soon as it happens. Explain to your child that the behavior is unacceptable, and ask her to correct her behavior and apologize, suggests Good Housekeeping. Have an in-depth discussion with your teen so that she understands why the behavior is not okay. Keep in mind that this will be a continuous effort, as it's unlikely she'll immediately change her behavior and stop being annoying altogether.
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Set clear boundaries by establishing house rules. When creating rules, allow your teen to provide his input, and as the rules are set, let him know that the rules cannot be broken and the boundaries cannot be crossed, according to the article by Dr. Phil McGraw, "Parents: Breaking Teen's Bad Habits." In addition to the rules, also develop a set of consequences for if he broke any of the house rules. Parents should always follow through with any and all consequences.
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Stay calm. Behavioral experts suggest that when your teen is talking back, rolling his eyes or doing some other annoying behavior, it's crucial not to yell or have any knee-jerk responses. Instead, keep your voice level, and try not to let him know you're angry or upset. Speak to your child like an adult, and explain how you feel when his attitude gets out of hand. Telling him how you feel will help jog his memory that you too have feelings and his behaviors can be hurtful.
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Offer incentives when your teen has made a significant effort to stop the annoying behaviors. Although going out and buying him a new car is overboard, allowing him to have more freedom and more responsibilities is more reasonable. Positive reinforcement will help him continue striving for good behavior, according to Dr. Phil McGraw. Also, when you reward your teen for good behavior, it shows him that trust can be rebuilt.
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References
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