Before we go any further, there’s something to remember: no one is perfect.

Even though you try to be the perfect parent, there is no denying the fact that you will make mistakes every now and again. There is absolutely no way around this.Fortunately, when you take the right approach, you can put your children on the path to future success.

Here are 5 habits to teach your children young:

1. Clean Up After Meals

Many children eat their meal and immediately run from the table. They assume their parents or a sibling will pick up their mess. You don’t want to let your child get into this bad habit. Instead, teach them the good habit of emptying their plate, rinsing it off, and putting it in the dishwasher (if applicable).

Once your child develops this habit, there’s a good chance it will follow him or her through the rest of their life.

2. Make Their Bed

It’s easy to wake up in the morning, head for the bathroom, and leave the bed unmade. Unfortunately, if you let this turn into a habit, it would remain a problem for the rest of your child’s life (or maybe until they get married).

Just the same as cleaning up after meals, it will take some time for your child to settle into this routine. As long as you don’t let up, a few weeks will go by and your child will adopt this habit as part of their day.

3. Be On Time (No Matter What)

It’s a problem that many adults have, so you want to do your best to hedge it off at an early age.

You should tell your child how important it is to be on time, no matter what is going on (unless it’s a true emergency).This doesn’t seem like a big deal at a very young age, but once your child reaches school age everything changes. They’ll need to arrive to class on time, every time.

This is one of the more difficult habits to teach, as some children don’t understand the importance of paying attention to time. Even so, as they grow, it becomes easier for a child to adapt.

4. Honesty is the Best Policy

Is there anything worse than lying? You don’t want your child to get into this bad habit early in life, as it’s something they may carry with them through the workforce and beyond.

From an early age, you should drill into your child’s head that honesty is the best policy.

Sure, there will be times when your child lies, but you should never stop teaching. The more you talk about the importance of honesty the greater chance there is that your child will eventually follow your advice.

5. Say Thank You, Please, and Sorry

Adults who don’t know how to be courteous and respectful to others are often those who missed out on the importance of this at a young age.

Get your children into the habit of saying thank you, please, and sorry (among other similar phrases).

Tip: if you expect your children to do this, you need to follow your own advice. If they see you being disrespectful of others, such as your spouse, they may begin to believe that it’s okay.

Final Thoughts

These are just a few of the many habits you should teach your children young. Once you have a plan in place for doing so, you need to stay the course for as long as it takes. Some children develop good habits after a few days or weeks, while others fight back for months on end. However, as long as you are persistent, things will come together soon enough.

One last bit of advice. Travel with your kids every chance you can! Try local cuisine, explore everything that trip to Iceland has to offer, and learn about new cultures every chance you get.

When you travel, your kids get to see a bigger viewpoint of the world, and that makes them better people. It offers them more understanding of how much there really is to see in the world.