School is starting around the country and as moms out there start to run into other mothers, I know it is inevitable that conflict will rear its ugly head. Sometimes it’s in the form of jealousy and other times it appears in the form of competition. I’m writing today’s post as a brief refresher from my book The 10 Habits of Happy Mothers and as a guidebook for moms out there.

Say No to Competition, Moms. One way to do that is through deliberate kindness. Doing kind things for others is always good, and acting kindly toward another mother with whom we compete helps our relationship and derails the desire to compete.

If there is another mother you know who just had her third baby and you desperately want another child but can’t have one, cook her a meal and bring it to her. If ther is a mother who works outside the home in a job that you think is fabulous but you know you can’t have, ask to take her child to the park one day while she’s working. Perhaps there’s a mother whose kids are number one and two on the varsity tennis team at your son’s high…