You know what they say — if you can't beat them, very cleverly outwit them in a way they won't realize until, like, ten years later.
Listen — sometimes as a parent, you've got to get creative. So, Redditor u/LeanderD asked, "Parents of Reddit, what’s your best example of reversed psychology on your kids that actually worked?" Here are 16 of the most hilarious, clever ways parents outsmarted their kids:
1. "My mom had a friend that would put vegetables on her own plate and not her kids's. When the kids asked, she would be reluctant to share, saying things like, 'That's grown up food. But...I suppose I can let you have a little.' Her kids grew up loving vegetables. Meanwhile, I sat at the dinner table for three hours staring at the yucky cauliflower I refused to eat."
2. "When I was a kid, I refused to get up in the morning. My mom used to wake me up and say we were going to trick my dad into thinking I was still asleep. So, she made me put on clothes and then hide under the covers and pretend to be asleep. Then my dad would come in to wake me up and I would 'fool' him because I was already dressed and ready. This worked on me for years and I never questioned it. In hindsight, it's pretty obvious that my parents just wanted me to get dressed without a fuss."
3. "I wanted to get my kids to do chores for the appreciation of hard earned money. Their weekly allowance was $5, which didn't motivate any of them to try hard on their chores. I now give them $20 a week, but they have to pay $5 in rent, $5 for internet, and $5 for food. So now that they get to hold it and spend it, they bust their butts to do their chores to get their huge $20 allowance."
4. "I took my 3-year-old son to one of those doctor's visits where he was going to get a shot. He was worried about the shot on the whole drive over, almost to the point of tears. We got to the doctor's office and a nurse subtly let me know that my son was not just scheduled for one shot, but five of them in the same visit. I turned to my son with an exaggerated smile and said, 'Good news! They figured out how to take that one big shot you were going to get and instead break it up into these five little, tiny shots so it won't hurt nearly as much!'"
"You could see the relief wash over his face. He stopped squirming and relaxed completely. He took the first shot and even smiled and said, 'It's true! The small ones don't hurt!' We actually made it through the third shot before the effect wore off and reality kicked in. Still...I counted it as a victory."
5. "I used to tell my little toddlers that if they were fibbing, a black dot would appear on their tongue, but only their mother could see it. So if I suspected a lie, I'd just say, 'Stick out your tongue!' If they kept tight lipped, I knew I was right. They are teenagers now and laugh about how they fell for this for YEARS."
6. "My dad used to play a game to see who could match and fold the most laundry. He never, ever won."
7. "One of my best friends through childhood was told that if she misbehaved, she wouldn't be allowed to have salad. She cherishes salad now and would always try to eat as much as possible during school lunch."
"Coincidentally, her now-husband wasn't allowed to read books if he misbehaved, and it had the same effect. I think it's hilarious that they'd be hitting the salad bar and library like some black market their narc parents couldn't reach."
8. "When my first son was about 4 years old, he would often burst into our bedroom way too early in the morning, full of energy. It was up to me to either get up and engage with him or send him off on some mission so I could grab a few more precious minutes of shut-eye. One mission I'm proud of was when I told him to find out which of his legs could run the fastest. He was charging around the corridor for ages doing a kind of manic goose-step before he came back in panting that they were both the same."
9. "My mom had sworn a bit around the house when I was a kid. When I was 4, we were out at the supermarket and I said the f-word really loudly. Very quickly and intently, she asked if I had just said 'truck.' She told me that was a bad word and I shouldn't ever say 'truck' like that again. So, I thought that was the bad word now, so used I always yelled 'truck' when I was being naughty."
10. "I taught my kids when they were toddlers that no amount of yelling, shaking, or hitting can wake a sleeping adult. The only thing that works is a gentle hug and/or a nice kiss on the cheek."
"Step one: tell the kids I'm going to sleep and that nothing they do will wake me (head buried face down is the safest position to do this). Step two: after the initial onslaught dies down pretend to awaken on your own. Tell them you got a bit of nap left in you and nothing can wake you, especially not hugs and kisses. Works like a charm."
11. "When I was in 5th grade, I won the D.A.R.E. (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) Medal and got to speak at D.A.R.E. graduation. When I showed my mom the medal, she laughed and said, 'Aw, that's cute, we'll see how you feel about drugs in high school.' That pissed me off to no end, so I never did drugs, just to prove my mom wrong."
12. "I always tell them 'I bet you can't!' when I ask them to do something. Both of them HATE the assertion that they're not capable of doing something. 'Can you put your toys away?' will almost certainly garner a hard NO, but 'I bet you can't put all those toys back in the box, no way you'll be able to!' will have them whizzing around tidying like demons, followed by a very indignant 'See, I told you I could!' Cue the fake surprise from me. They're only 4 and 7, so I know this has got limited time, but so far works like a charm every time."
13. "Twice a year, I let the kids eat whatever they wanted and do whatever they wanted. It usually ended up being a lot of junk food. The first three or so times, they ate so poorly that a few of them threw up. They now regulate themselves much better and choose quality snacks over quantity."
14. "I was eating ice cream in the kitchen in the middle of the night when my son came in unexpectedly. I had been busted, and this was the last of the ice cream. I did not want to share. I offered him some, and he said, 'sure.' I held out my bowl and said, 'There aren't many nuts in it. You can pick around them.' He recoiled, not wanting it anymore."
"I sighed impatiently and held out a spoonful. 'Just try it. You'll like it.' He got mad and said, 'you know I hate nuts, mom! I don't want it, now leave me alone!' 'Fine!' I snapped as he stomped out of the room. 'But it wouldn't have killed you to just try one bite!'
Here's the thing: I hated nuts more than he did. My whole family knew it. There were no nuts in the ice cream — it was just chocolate chocolate fudge. I still can't believe that worked."
15. "When I was a toddler, I had cancer and had to spend a lot of time in a children's hospital. My floor was basically one big circle of windowed rooms on the outside with a big nurse's station in the middle so they could keep an eye on everything. Getting up and walking was very important to my recovery, so my parents would encourage me to take a lap with them around the nurse's station. I was usually tired (and also an uncooperative toddler), so I was less than enthusiastic about it.
"My parents would get me to walk with them about 3/4ths of the way around the nurse's station, then ask if I wanted to turn around and go back to my room. Being a dumb kid, I always agreed. And that's how my parents used reverse psychology to get me to do one and a half laps instead of just one."
16. And finally, "My son was really impulsive when he was little. He would try to run away from me when we would cross the street instead of holding my hand. So I started to tell him that he needed to hold my hand so nobody would try to steal me. It worked. He always held my hand, because he felt responsible for making sure nobody tried to kidnap me out in public."
Parents of BuzzFeed (or kids that have been fooled!) — do you have a story where you cleverly outsmarted your kids like this? If so, tell us about them in the comments below!
Note: Submissions have been edited for length and/or clarity.