Sunday, July 31, 2011

Mind games


“Don’t touch those sweets’ I was told. And just by uttering those words, my mom made the sweets irresistible to me. I don’t even like sweets all that much but now that she said I couldn’t have them, I wanted them.

My mom, clever as she is, uses this technique to make her grandsons eat veggies.  Don’t eat that vegetable, she’ll say. It is only for grown-ups.  And in a while you’ll see the kids eating more of that, just out of curiosity to eat the “forbidden fruit”. For a long time she had them drinking bournvita, calling it tea and feeding them bournvita, when she gave the grownups tea. It made the kids feel all grownup drinking “tea” with elders. It was not until much later until they realized the truth behind this.

 I’m sure a lot of moms, including my own have used this techniques to make their kids do the “good” things, in spite of being rebels. “Reverse psychology”, it is called. But the kids soon start to realize that they are being tricked and learn the wiser ways. I see that happening with my nephews. But the longer the phase can last, that’s the advantage you got.

Why is it that when we are forbidden to do something, those things become even more lucrative to us? Is it the feeling that we have something that we shouldn’t? Or is it the little rebel in each of us trying to prove a point. To say, yeah I can stand against the world and flout the rules, in the simplest of matters.

But you have to admit, moms are much smarter than what we give them credit for.

2 comments:

Roopa said...

Thanks for calling me smart.
My pleasure ;)

Maya said...

Oh, you're welcome. BTW, I ought to tell you I consider you much smarter than a lot of moms I know. :)