How do we ensure that our kids grow up to be happy and well adjusted people? What really matters when it comes to raising kids and why is it such a tough job? These are questions we all have as parents and the needs of each child are as individual as the needs of every person on the planet. This article will explore the “tip of the iceberg” as we discuss the most difficult job in the world….raising children in America.
The first huge mistake I think we as parents make is this “I am going to give my kids more than I had” mentality. At this stage in the game in your lives that may or may not be possible. We start out with this collective conscious goal as people , thinking that if we give our kids all this “stuff” it will make them happy. This is a mistake because not only does it teach our kids to just expect more and more, we get to the point where we just can’t keep up to the demands of our children. They have to have what their friends have or they will be left out. I think our society is very materialistic and this is one of the problems with kids today.
Our kids are spoiled because we all live in the richest country in the world. Our economy may not be great right now but I bet our children have way more stuff than most kids in other countries. This breeds a lack of drive. Our kids are not motivated because we give them just about everything they want when they want it. Its so difficult not to became it makes us feel good to buy our kids stuff with our hard earned money. It makes us feel like we are doing a good job as parents.
We need to stop the madness. We as Americans are raising lazy kids that expect everything to be handed to them. Its only natural to want what’s best for them but I think our grandparents had it right. Lets start with instilling a work ethic. We as people will spend the majority of our lives working. Do you think it would be wise to prepare our youth for a great job that motivates them to want to climb the ladder to success?
We must start teaching our kids the fundamentals of getting what you give. If you give fifty percent you will only get fifty percent of the rewards. Teachers need to be tougher and stop making exceptions for kids and tip toeing around issues to not “anger” the parents. Are we too busy that we can’t even work together with our child’s teachers? They don’t get paid enough to have a hidden agenda. They do it because they care for the future of our youth. Pardon my French but its time to get our heads out of our asses America and start teaching our youth the benefits of hard work and stop handing them everything!
