“No way!” Is my two-year-old’s latest expression of unwillingness to do what you’ve asked him to do. “No way, no way, no way!” He shouts, pouting like Mussolini. “No way!” He giggles as he runs away from you.

His brother and sister screech in terror and run from him. They know he will not hold back. He will use whatever violence he feels is necessary to enforce his will upon them. He is two. He is a super villain. And the world's only hope, is you.

You can talk to him. Reason with him. Use your authority voice. But none of this has any chance whatsoever of working. He’s a super villain. He has no weaknesses. Except one. Boredom is his Kryptonite. Three minutes of sitting without being able to do anything is like an eternity in an interdimensional super prison for a two-year-old.

Of course, a two-year-old won't just sit quietly on the “bad choice place” and accept their boredom, so you have to sit with them, being boring.

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What they don’t know is that you have your own super power. Every parent has it. It is the super human ability to endure any amount of boredom. For years we have trained, doing mind crushingly menial tasks over and over again. Sitting through school assemblies and parent evenings and children's parties. Reading the same book every night. Cooking dull uninspired meals with cheap, dull ingredients every day. Hoovering. Over. And. Over. And. Over. Like Shaolin Monks we thrust our fists into barrels of pure boredom until they are like iron.

We could sit through an entire live session of the proceedings of the general synod of the Anglican church and think of it as a nice rest.

Sorry, son. You don’t have a chance.