I always thought that children need tons and tons of praise to build their self-esteem.  Then I learned of the dangers of 'overpraising' around the time my first child was born.  I learned that children could easily become too self-centered if they are constantly praise for doing ordinary things.  I remember that the advice at the time was to "be specific with your praise"  For example, don't just say "That's a beautiful painting." say "I love the colors you chose." And show interest "why did you choose those colors?"

 I have been doing that, even when it felt a bit awkward, but I wasn't totally happy with that solution. It still required me to praise things that may or may not have been praiseworthy and to tell the truth, my son's self-esteem may be a *bit* too high.

What's a mother to do?  I don't want to deflate his ego, but I don't want him to be overly confident or worse, get lazy because he thinks his every accomplishment is specatular.

Well,  I have found a terrific article that presents a great solution. The solution is to praise your children for the EFFORT they exert.  Of course you can still praise them when the results of their effort is worthy, but if you  praise them for their effort, then they learn that WORKING toward a result is a good, praiseworthy thing.  What a great lesson. I have been doing this with my son and I can already see a difference!