One of the best pieces of advice I received from a mentor and friend about parenting is: Go into their world. Here’s what that means…
Our kids are often forced to integrate into our “adult” world. They attend our events, go to our things, and spend time with our adult friends. And this is a good thing. I am a parent who always attempts to spend time with my kids as much as possible, and multitasking by taking them with me is often how I can get bonus extensions of time with them.
But going into their world is important too. We should take our attention to what they are interested in…YouTube trends, sports, hobbies, movies, bands/artists, etc. I’ve found that when I focus my attention on things that they love, multiple things happen at once:
I learn so much more about what they are interested in.
I see what excites them and gets their passion stirring.
I can anticipate what direction they are heading.
A couple of years ago, I said to my youngest daughter, “Explain Tik Tok to me.” Her answer: “Dad, you wouldn’t even understand it, so I won’t even try.” Wow! Little did she know I already knew about it, but I guess she underestimated me, which sometimes happens as parents, doesn’t it?
Well, they may not think you will “get it,” but make the effort to understand and learn what they are into.
Going into their world will say to them:
I love you.
I care about what you care about.
I want to know what’s going on in your life.
Parenting isn’t easy, and there’s no one size fits all approach, but going into their world allows you to learn life on their terms, which is a good thing to do from time to time.
Geoff Eckart
CEO & Founder
Never The Same
Photo by John Schnobrich on Unsplash