Having a high school kid is like sitting in the roller coaster car as they climb the incline of freshman year, sophomore year, then begin the crazy roller coaster into junior year and ultimately arrive at the end, the senior year.
These next four years fly by really quickly so hang on.
And as a working parent, all this can sometimes feel like a juggling act. Aside from making sure, you look immaculate for your business presentation. There’s also the marathon of coming home. After beating every red light to get through the rush hour traffic, you have to fix a dinner several degrees above the standard microwave fare. In all these, you’ve yet to have “ME” time, spouse time and time out with friends and family members. Whew!!
For parents, the apron strings are pretty much frayed to the last thread by the end of senior year. Your child will become vastly more independent. They may start driving, dating, and working at their first job. Family time wanes as their teenage lives begin to travel at a thrilling speed. They are hurtling toward their future, and all a parent can do is hang on to life and encourage them towards greater and bigger things.
The stress of juggling childrearing responsibilities with the demands of work takes a toll on many parents’ personal and professional lives. Over 50% of all employees report that job demands interfere with their personal responsibilities, while 43% of employees say that their family responsibilities interfere with their work performance, according to a study by the American Psychological Association.
Often, there just doesn’t seem to be enough hours in the day to get everything done and meet everyone’s needs. While managing a career and family leaves some parents feeling guilty and frazzled, others seem to be able to effortlessly balance parenthood with full-time work. Parents who are able to raise well-adjusted children while also maintaining a career have to make sacrifices in order to keep up with the pace.
There are many aspects of how parents can be an important and positive influence in making decisions as a child gets groomed and follows everything that he has seen in his life whereas excessive parental control results in adverse outcomes. Parents should be cautioned against imposing their own goals on to their children or seeing their child’s accomplishments as a reflection on themselves. So while parents should show genuine interest and support. Choosing a career is an extremely important decision that impacts an individual‘s entire future, so parents can become very stressed as they can unwittingly make the past seem perfect and the future terrifying.
Parents influence the level of education or training that their children achieve; the knowledge they have about work and different occupations; the beliefs and attitudes they have to working; and the motivation they have to succeed. Most of this is learned unconsciously, children and teenagers absorb their parent’s attitude and expectations as they grow up.
Some of the key factors are as follows:
• Encourage your children to get as much education as possible
• Help them to discover their innate talents and skills
• Develop their knowledge of the world of work
• Teach them decision- making skills
• Value gender equity and cultural diversity
• Become aware of career resources/ education and training opportunities
• Observe the effects of work experience.
Parents should guard against shooting down ideas their children may have about their future careers. If they react negatively, it may shut down the whole exploration process. Parents need to keep the lines of communication open and encourage their child to gather as much information as possible on their career interest areas. A parent must recognize that their role is simply to act as a facilitator in their child’s career journey and allowing independent career choices marks a first real step into adulthood.
Look out for the danger signs in your child’s approach:
1) Waiting until the last minute to make decisions.
2) Unrealistic expectations.
3) Promises to work miracles with study next term.
4) Carrying too many higher -level subjects in spite of poor reports from teachers.
5) Interference from social activities or a weekend job which is funding their social life.
6) Selecting a course because the career is well paid. They are more likely to gain a good result in their degree if they enjoy and are interested in the course.
All the above are points that parents need to consider to make it easier for them and their children to progress in their personal and professional lives ahead of them. What can be a lot more favorable situation is that parents and children should be in regular touch with the High School counselors who can help bridge the gap due to hectic work hours and scores of responsibilities and expectations. This works best in making sure children are not neglected and parents are up to date with their progress.