My best bit of parenting advice is "parent the child you have, gently, wisely and mindfully". I believe that as parents we are innately in tune with our children and if we tap into that deep wisdom we will parent our children well. We need to allow our children space to be who they are, not little mini-me's, we need to allow space for growth, for developing their own interests. We need to trust our children enough to allow them to be independent and to make their own safe decisions. Our job as parents is not to control our children, instead it is to curate our children's environment gently so they navigate between safe boundaries independently and safely. This is a fine balance, which needs to be re-calibrated with each new phase of childhood.