A mom’s viral TikTok video explains why it’s so important to embrace the behavior of strong-willed young girls
Anyone who’s parented a strong-willed child knows how hard it can be. The arguments, the tantrums, the talking back—and on top of it all, feeling like your kid’s bad behavior is a reflection of you. You’re their parent, after all. But a mom’s viral TikTok video has a new take on strong-willed kids—in particular, strong-willed girls—and why we should embrace them.
Mom Hannah (@sherwoodforestcreations) posted the video describing how her daughter was strong-willed basically from day one.
“This is for the parents of strong-willed or difficult children, especially girls,” she starts her video. “This isn’t going to be a post of me bashing my daughter, but she was extremely difficult between the ages of like one and a half to four, where anytime we went anywhere, it was meltdowns, temper tantrums at home, kicking, screaming, ‘I hate you, you’re stupid.’ Just horrific behavior that I felt like was a reflection on me.”
That’s a relatable feeling. But Hannah goes on to explain why she learned to embrace her daughter’s strong-willed personality.
“I knew that I was not going to break her,” she explains. “I did not want to break her spirit because I knew that being strong-willed would be so beneficial to her as a woman. We do not need any more broken girls.”
And that attitude paid off. Hannah’s daughter is now starting school, and she shared an absolutely heartwarming update.
“My daughter is six now and she just had her kindergarten parent-teacher conferences. And do you know what the first thing that came out of her teacher’s mouth was? ‘Your daughter is a joy. She is kind. She is clever. She is smart. She is witty, and she is a leader,'” Hannah says, getting visibly emotional. “And I could not be more proud.”
Here’s the message Hannah really wants parents to hear: “Strong-willed toddlers make strong-willed girls make strong-willed women make strong-willed female leaders.”
And that’s what the world needs more of.
