Reading lots of blogs and message boards in recent weeks, it’s amazing how tough some parents have life, how often the teenagers are all over the place, mum and dad no longer together, anti-authority behavior …..
Every situation will have a story attached, which is one of the minor frustrations about having message boards and blog pages – we just never really grasp the full story and, of course, we are always being presented with only one viewpoint.
Although our children are through the teenage years, thankfully (!), we always encouraged them to think of something they would really like to do today if they had all the qualifications.
Not only does this encourage them to think about a future career, but it also helps them to focus on what they might need to do to get there. So many teenagers throw their education away with no thought whatsoever for the long-term future. Their friends or mates are leaving school, so they are going to follow.
I have seen, in mentoring programs I have been involved with, how teenagers have a life-changing experience when they have explored a variety of career paths with their non-judgmental volunteer adult mentors and in many cases they have seen how important it is to complete their schooling, rather than drop out at the first available opportunity.
Many others have come to see that it is worth their while giving school their best shot, as wise employers ask to see their latest school report eg, if they are away from school for many days during a semester and have not been ill etc., the odds are strong that they will repeat this when they enter the workforce.
This lesson has been learnt often as a result of talking to someone in a career that interests them, someone that the mentor or a family friend knows.
When a student begins to start thinking seriously about career options, this can often be a turning-point in their journey towards adolescence. A parent can ruin the journey, though, when they laugh at their child’s career ideas – better to encourage them to go after those ideas, research the career with them, show an interest, let them know that you believe in them …. lots can happen and, as parents, we can be pleasantly surprised.
No quick-fix solutions, but it’s worth exploring as many strategies as we can during these confusing teenage years.
Every situation will have a story attached, which is one of the minor frustrations about having message boards and blog pages – we just never really grasp the full story and, of course, we are always being presented with only one viewpoint.
Although our children are through the teenage years, thankfully (!), we always encouraged them to think of something they would really like to do today if they had all the qualifications.
Not only does this encourage them to think about a future career, but it also helps them to focus on what they might need to do to get there. So many teenagers throw their education away with no thought whatsoever for the long-term future. Their friends or mates are leaving school, so they are going to follow.
I have seen, in mentoring programs I have been involved with, how teenagers have a life-changing experience when they have explored a variety of career paths with their non-judgmental volunteer adult mentors and in many cases they have seen how important it is to complete their schooling, rather than drop out at the first available opportunity.
Many others have come to see that it is worth their while giving school their best shot, as wise employers ask to see their latest school report eg, if they are away from school for many days during a semester and have not been ill etc., the odds are strong that they will repeat this when they enter the workforce.
This lesson has been learnt often as a result of talking to someone in a career that interests them, someone that the mentor or a family friend knows.
When a student begins to start thinking seriously about career options, this can often be a turning-point in their journey towards adolescence. A parent can ruin the journey, though, when they laugh at their child’s career ideas – better to encourage them to go after those ideas, research the career with them, show an interest, let them know that you believe in them …. lots can happen and, as parents, we can be pleasantly surprised.
No quick-fix solutions, but it’s worth exploring as many strategies as we can during these confusing teenage years.
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