A child is born full of energy, eager for knowledge and discovery, natural and free from pretension, innocent and free from hypocrisy. Then he begins to grow, and parents start to see him as the most important vessel for their dreams and ambitions, one that must be as perfect as possible in order to reflect their greatness. So parents begin mapping out the exact steps he must follow through constant guidance, praising him when he follows them and scolding him when he does not. Day after day he walks this path, rarely given the chance to express what he wants, what he desires, or what he loves, because of the final image he is expected to fulfill and because he is still young and does not yet know what is good for him. His personal will gradually fades under the weight of our will and our control over him, and the child begins to lose his sense of psychological freedom. Suppression begins. A child needs to feel capable of choosing, capable of expressing himself, and capable of experiencing autonomy. He needs to feel that he is a distinct being from us, with his own uniqueness and identity, his own opinions and thoughts, and his own feelings and personal needs. When the child grows and becomes a young man on the threshold of university, having never been granted psychological freedom, and you ask him: "What do you want to study at university?" he answers: "I do not know, it depends on my grades. But my parents want me to become an engineer." When a child loses his sense of psychological freedom, suppression begins. When suppression begins, Self-confidence declines, Self-esteem diminishes, and self-awareness retreats. He becomes less aware of what he wants, what he loves, and what he truly enjoys doing. Creativity declines, because creativity only grows in the light of the belief that I can choose, I know what I want, and I love what I do. It grows only in the light of autonomy. Scientific studies indicate that all creative individuals who contributed something truly innovative to their societies were raised in families that provided them with a sense of autonomy and psychological freedom, granting them freedom of expression, freedom of thought, and freedom of choice. We may deprive our child of freedom of choice out of fear that he will make mistakes. But he will make far more mistakes in the future because he never had the chance to develop the skill of decision-making, which only grows through practice. A child needs to take initiative, succeed at times and fail at others, and learn from his mistakes so he can grow and develop. If he fears making mistakes, he will only act within very narrow and conventional limits, becoming a person who fears taking initiative unless the outcome is guaranteed one hundred percent. He loses the spirit of adventure, the ability to embrace challenges, and the capacity to climb the ladder of personal and societal development. Let him take initiative without fear, and let him learn that new mistakes are the path to growth and creativity. This freedom is often misunderstood because we fear it may lead to religious laxity. This fear is misplaced. We must plant faith, belief, and values in our children, and then allow them freedom of expression and freedom of choice in matters that relate to their own lives. For example, when we force a child to eat what we want, he feels oppressed and suppressed. Yet we can offer him a choice and explain that it is good for him to eat a small amount of this food because it is full of goodness and gives him strength, and then he can eat what he loves afterward. So how do we balance maintaining parental authority with granting psychological freedom?