I have become acquainted with some young people, younger than 30, older than college kids, both boys and grils. They have one thing in common, that is, they are all dissatisfied with their current status. Some need to go back to school while others have not found their ideal jobs. Whenever they come to my attention, one question always comes to my mind. Would they have been better off if they had have different parenting when they were young? I strongly believe that proper parenting and guiding make big difference in a person’s life. Thus, I would not think it is their fault that they now are not happy with their lives.

Yes, you may say they can always come back to school or make extra efforts to make up for the lost time. Yet, if they were not equipped with the will to rise above when they were young, how can we realistically expect them to be better than their previous self? Most likely, nothing will change them too drastically at this stage of their life, as human beings are very much the products of habits and they have been too much controlled by the habits formed in the first 20 years of their lives. Like smoking, if you start young and get addicted, it will take extra dose of will power to get off the hook.

In the eyes of some minors, proper parenting may look like too much parental control. They may resent this at this age when they don’t know better and cannot see farther than their noses. Yet, if the minors cannot control themselves, responsible parents, instead taking an easy way out and giving up authority, should step forward and stand up for the children’s benefit. And it is better to exercise this uncomfortable control now and get them on the right track than letting the bad habit take over the control over them 10 years later.

This is another posting written especially for my children before their birthday.