“In an ideal circumstance a child is raised to believe that they are incredibly special, but no more special than anyone else.”

These are the words that rocked syndicated columnist Lisa Earle McLeod’s world when she read them after her first child was born and changed the way she viewed her role as a parent.

In her column on “The Duality of Parenting,” McLeod goes on to say that successful parents have mastered the skill of “AND.”

“We need to set high expectations AND provide unconditional support. We need to establish an environment of freedom AND limits. We need to be both nurturing AND tough, and we need to honor our child’s unique magnificence while at the same time, help them understand they have no more rights and privileges than anyone else on this planet.”

Is this hard. Heck yes.

Despite shamelessly hustling her new book “The Triangle of Truth,” McLeod’s column

The Duality of Parenting: The Authoritative vs. Permissive Debate

is worth checking out.