Earned Self Esteem
When kids are given praise for everything, whether earned or not, kids don't end up with a good self esteem. They instead end up being self centered and spoiled, and they will be in for a huge letdown when they are out in the real world.
But, you can build a good self esteem in kids with praise they deserve. Praise them every time they do something right - any little thing. If you think they seldom do anything right, you are not looking with the right attitude. But, if they have trouble succeeding, place them in situations where they can succeed. Then be ready to praise.
The more you praise them when they do succeed, the more things they will try, and the harder they will try to succeed. It is a snowball effect. Kids will prefer praise to the opposite, they will prefer succeeding to failing, and they will even prefer succeeding to not trying.
Once they master a teeny chore, give them something a little harder, then work your way up. If you give them hard things to start with, you may destine them to fail. Remember when you learned math? You weren't asked to multiply 3 times 5 on the first day, you were asked to add 1 plus 1.
