Millions of families co-parent, but not all are successful at it. This is often because they don't have the necessary tools to navigate the situation. The more they know about how to co-parent successfully, the better off they and the children will be. With a new calendar upon us, it's a great time to set some co-parenting resolutions for 2023.

"There is no more important new year’s resolution to make than striving to be a better parent," said Dads' Resource Center Executive Director Jeffrey Steiner. "For separated parents, what their children need and want more than anything is for mom and dad to work together in a respectful and productive manner on their behalf."

Here are 5 tips for setting successful co-parenting resolutions for the New Year:

• · Use the new calendar as motivation for a fresh start if one is needed. There’s something liberating about a new year that helps people start new things, create goals, etc.
• · Sign down and have a conversation about the coming year. Determine what the two of you would like to achieve, avoid, and improve upon. An open and understanding conversation filled with kindness, rather than blaming, will go a long way.
• · Make some co-parenting resolutions together that will lead to positive change and outcomes. Whether it's to no longer argue in front of the child, stop being late to pick-up times, or something else, determine what will be worked on.
• · Resolve to not speak poorly about the other parent to the child. It's easy to get mad at one another and then complain to the child about it, but that is stress they don't need. They will feel like the conflicts are their fault, so that should be avoided.
• · Discuss how the two of you will handle conflicts from now on. When agreeing upon a constructive way to address them, resolve to stick to that as the new year starts and makes its way through the seasons. It may be necessary to remind each other months down the road of the goals for the year.

“Whatever the reasons that their relationship did not work out, their children will be their shared interest for many years,” said Steiner. “At the same time that they look to move forward in their own lives, they need to work collaboratively on behalf of their children.”

Dads' Resource Center was started by Dr. Joel N. Myers, a father of eight and the founder and CEO of AccuWeather. Its mission is to help combat the issues associated with children growing up without their fathers in the home. At its heart, the center is a child advocacy organization that aims to ensure that each child has the appropriate involvement and contributions from both parents. To get more information, visit the site at: https://dadsrc.org