This article could not be right on
target. I am astounded by the entitlement of this generation. The
cars that they drive as well as the fact they were given to them
by mommy and daddy. Insurance paid, gas and maintenance paid.
Outside of Chic Fila I have not seen a teenager work in fast food
restaurants in years. Most teens now want jobs starting at the
$12-$15 dollar an hour rate, as a first time employee. Even when they
do get jobs, they expect time off with pay within the first year. Yes,
even as a part time employee. They are not willing to work their way
up, they expect to be on top to begin with.
When our children were young guys, we expected them to work and work hard! Mark took our boys on job sites ( sometimes just because I needed a break as a home schooling mom) to see first hand the hard work that a man must do to provide for their families. We had a family motto: Work now, play later.
Having worked in schools I see today's kids with an absolute entitlement: designer clothing, nails manicured weekly, high end cars, and money in their pockets at all times. They don't have a sense of saving for what they want or even need. Parents have decided that their children come first. They want their lives to be easier than what they have had to do. In fact they have projected a future for their children of being served at every avenue. This is happening at younger ages all the time. I am sorry, but your five year old does not need a pedicure. Your seven year old does not need to stop at Starbucks on the way home from soccer practice......and don't even get me started on over crowded schedules of entertainment for children.
News flash mom and dad: you don't owe your children comfortably lush life. You owe them a life of work ethic. A life of accomplishment, goal setting. Few and far between is the teen age girl who does not wrinkle a nose at the thought of babysitting for some extra money or the boy that takes a snow shovel and make a few dollars shoveling the sidewalk for an elderly neighbor. In fact, so many of these kids have their bedrooms cleaned on a regular basis by a service they don't even have to dust their own dressers! How can we expect them to learn to work hard if they've never been expected to work or even taught how to work.
What we're seeing is a nation of over indulged individuals. I hear it repeatedly, My children are under so much stress with their AP courses, sports, drama and dance. Really, people? Do they need to do all that at once? Limit it,give it some structure, and guidance. The reason that these kids “have” to do this is because you allow it! Guess what parents? Stress is not so bad! If you did not place stress on a pencil with your fingers, it will not write! You must apply pressure! Pressure is how you get results. Where you allow the pressure makes the difference. Our nation's parents are allowing our kids to be obsessed with themselves. They primarily focus on themselves. If there isn't something for them in doing something, you can forget it. Why should I go rake my elderly neighbors leaves? what do I get out of it? How about the satisfaction of having helped a neighbor? Is that a good enough reason? It surely should be. Children need a balance that is directed by a thoughtful caring mom and dad. Instead of stringing along a laundry list of scheduled activities, why not pare it down, add family time that might not include them at the top of the list? How about serving others for a change? How about cutting out an extracurricular hobby to pursue a part time job in a grocery store or florist?
You can either chose to cultivate a generation of adults who “just can't cope with it all” or you can chose to watch what careful pruning and management may bring in a life well balanced may lead to in the future. You may not see it all at once, but you can be sure that you will see it and in more ways than you can think.
When our children were young guys, we expected them to work and work hard! Mark took our boys on job sites ( sometimes just because I needed a break as a home schooling mom) to see first hand the hard work that a man must do to provide for their families. We had a family motto: Work now, play later.
Having worked in schools I see today's kids with an absolute entitlement: designer clothing, nails manicured weekly, high end cars, and money in their pockets at all times. They don't have a sense of saving for what they want or even need. Parents have decided that their children come first. They want their lives to be easier than what they have had to do. In fact they have projected a future for their children of being served at every avenue. This is happening at younger ages all the time. I am sorry, but your five year old does not need a pedicure. Your seven year old does not need to stop at Starbucks on the way home from soccer practice......and don't even get me started on over crowded schedules of entertainment for children.
News flash mom and dad: you don't owe your children comfortably lush life. You owe them a life of work ethic. A life of accomplishment, goal setting. Few and far between is the teen age girl who does not wrinkle a nose at the thought of babysitting for some extra money or the boy that takes a snow shovel and make a few dollars shoveling the sidewalk for an elderly neighbor. In fact, so many of these kids have their bedrooms cleaned on a regular basis by a service they don't even have to dust their own dressers! How can we expect them to learn to work hard if they've never been expected to work or even taught how to work.
What we're seeing is a nation of over indulged individuals. I hear it repeatedly, My children are under so much stress with their AP courses, sports, drama and dance. Really, people? Do they need to do all that at once? Limit it,give it some structure, and guidance. The reason that these kids “have” to do this is because you allow it! Guess what parents? Stress is not so bad! If you did not place stress on a pencil with your fingers, it will not write! You must apply pressure! Pressure is how you get results. Where you allow the pressure makes the difference. Our nation's parents are allowing our kids to be obsessed with themselves. They primarily focus on themselves. If there isn't something for them in doing something, you can forget it. Why should I go rake my elderly neighbors leaves? what do I get out of it? How about the satisfaction of having helped a neighbor? Is that a good enough reason? It surely should be. Children need a balance that is directed by a thoughtful caring mom and dad. Instead of stringing along a laundry list of scheduled activities, why not pare it down, add family time that might not include them at the top of the list? How about serving others for a change? How about cutting out an extracurricular hobby to pursue a part time job in a grocery store or florist?
You can either chose to cultivate a generation of adults who “just can't cope with it all” or you can chose to watch what careful pruning and management may bring in a life well balanced may lead to in the future. You may not see it all at once, but you can be sure that you will see it and in more ways than you can think.
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