Shape up or ship out. That’s what my mother used to say to me as a child when I was misbehaving. Then she would laugh and laugh, and soon we would both be laughing together. She meant every word of it … well almost every word. I, of course, knew she wouldn’t have thrown me out of the family if I didn’t shape up. I never realized what a powerful message these words carried for me. She was telling me where the boundary was and guiding me to shape my behavior in a direction that works for the whole, so I could most successfully be a part of the family. Her use of humor helped the corrective medicine of shaping go down more smoothly. She was such a great mother and still is. So much of her nurturing greatness rests on her use of shaping.
To read this article in its entirety, you will visit Bridging Worlds Behavioral Services, a sister organization to Heart-Centered Revolutions. Bridging Worlds provides behavioral services, which support the limitless potential of individuals with autism and developmental disabilities.
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