A mom of two is going viral for her secret on how she gets toddlers to listen, claiming the effect is like a “magic trick.”
Camilla Carrizales (@everydaycamilla), also a former nanny of 10 years, shared her tip in a video on TikTok, which some parents report having “instant success” with.
“You have to talk to them like you are giving them the best tea, like you are gossiping with your best friend,” Carrizales said in her clip.
The mom then demonstrates the approach by “confiding” in her toddler about the dreaded task of cleaning up toys.
Instead of issuing commands, Carrizales frames chores as a shared annoyance they can tackle together, finishing with a reward—like juice on the porch.
Carrizales first created the method when she was nannying a 4-year-old girl on an Alaskan cruise, filled with mostly older adults.
“[The cruise] required more good behavior than can be asked of a 4-year-old [and] I saw that she needed a way to have fun while I still behaving,” Carrizales told Newsweek. “I started whispering to her, speaking to her to she was my good friend, and I quickly noticed how well she was cooperating. Since then, I’ve used this tactic with over 15 different children including two of my own and I’ve seen firsthand how well it works.”
Her theory on why it works is simple: kids are tired of being bossed around. “Do you like being told what to do, corrected, and controlled all day? I don’t. Toddlers and children don’t either,” she explained.
“In a world where all adults are talking down to you, giving you orders and adjusting your behavior, an adult that gets on your level and talks to you with respect and some whispery fun gets your attention,” Carrizales continued. “Kids want to have fun with you; they also want to feel like a team. I find that this tactic checks those boxes.”
Carrizales’ clip has gone viral on TikTok, amassing 1.2 million views in just five days.
A mix of users commented saying they want to try the tip straightaway, while some shared success stories.
“I do this and it works,” one user said.
“I am also a former nanny and a mother of four and I can confirm. It’s all about mind tricks and positive association,” another added.
A third user wrote, “Simple and perfect. This is why community is so important.”
Others joked that they would be trying the tip with their husbands.
The reaction online stunned Carrizales. “I can’t really believe how many people have said they’d never thought of this… but that it really worked,” she said. “I made the video on a whim, and I imagined three to five people would say, ‘Duh, this is obvious,’ so the fact that it has reached and helped so many people has been both surprising and rewarding.”
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