As a leader in a business you know the importance of relationships. If you are on a school advisory board or work on a committee in any social situation, it is relationships that can make the difference in successful projects. If you know someone from other parts of their lives, you will know better what makes them tick, what their strengths and weaknesses are. All of this comes from spending time with them outside the committee, employment or social environment you are presently working in.
Much the same with your family and children. If you can spend some time with your children outside of the time of taking them to and from school and their activities, you will learn a lot more about them. You may even help prevent some of the most commons ails of children today. It was said to me one time by a psychologist, that if a parent would spend just one hour per week with each of their child alone, doing something that they enjoyed doing, outside of the normal things that you do, that we would rid ourselves of a very large percentage of the ADHD cases that we have in America today.
Developing relationships with your children in this manner, will allow you to lead them in other areas of their lives more effectively. It will help both of you to grow in your relationship along with social and emotional growth. The confidence your child will gain with the feeling of really belonging to a well lead family unit will go a long way in keeping them safe from many of the obstacles and road bumps children meet today.