Every parent wants what's best for their child. And to ensure this happens, they actively push to engage in their children's lives. This helps to ensure they're making the right choices. In some cases, some parents will even want to have an 'upper hand' when it comes to making major life decisions, like a career choice. Research shows that when children feel supported by their parents, they feel more confident in choosing a career that suits them. If a parent fails in their past career goals, they'll likely want to relieve their aspirations in their child. As a parent, try and instill a mature and sensible mindset in your child. This gives your child the tools to make their own informed decisions. So, how do you achieve this? Here's how.
-
Avoid Making Your Child an Extension of You
Your child is a different individual with a different mindset. They're not you. What drives you may be uniquely different from your child's. If you love a specific job, your child may find it different. As a parent, you can set the pace by researching for accredited accelerated degree programs online. With this catalog, you can narrow down the list to what they prefer, not what you like.
-
Act Like a Pillar
Think of it this way. Pillars help support buildings. They don't dictate how an owner should use the building. Similarly, try and act as a foundation in your children's lives. This means you need to be supporting them as they find their path to the ideal career. Your role is to boost them up: Theirs is to reach for different possibilities in the fields they wish to pursue.
-
Have a One-on-One Decision
Communication is the lifeline of every business. Similar to a business, you need to communicate with your child. Ask your child which subjects they find interesting. Discuss their hobbies and extracurricular activities. Understand what they're good at and what they enjoy. During the discussion, be supportive of the things that your child shows interest in. Listen to their opinion of why they think a particular area is worth choosing.
-
Check Your Child's Strengths
Every child is born with strengths in different niches. As a parent, you must ensure these strengths are discovered quickly. Don't leave this to happen naturally. Here's why. They might never discover their true potential until it's too late. Does this mean a child's strengths will help them decide their ideal career path? Yes. They'll venture into a career they like and be more successful.
-
Ask them to Try Personality Tests
This is a tricky area, so try and approach it carefully. Otherwise, your child will run for the hills when you mention "personality tests." However, there's something valuable about personality tests. Also, encourage them to take several tests. Since personality tests are different, results tend to be skewed. This happens because your child is younger and doesn't understand them well. However, they're great resources when a child is trying to figure themselves out.
-
Exposure to Different Activities
This is an excellent strategy to learn about your child's skills. Offer your child several opportunities to try new activities. Expose them to science, arts, nature, travel, or animals – the list is endless! Try and pay attention to what arouses their interest. If they are curious about a particular area, encourage them to learn more about it.
-
Have a Circle and Encourage Your Child to Find Theirs
As Emanuel James Rohn says, "You are the average of the five people you spend your time with." As a parent, what kind of social circle do you have? Are you encouraging your child to find their circle? Push your child to get out of the comfort zone. Teach your child how to network. Please encourage them to spend time with inspiring people. This will dictate their success in the future.
-
Encourage them to Volunteer and Attend Internships
The best way to gauge whether you like or dislike a particular field is to work in it. Encourage your child to attend summer internships. If possible, allow them to explore different professions. You can also point them to paid internships. However, don't overly focus on finding a paid position. Your child can intern part-time and work part-time. Thirty or so hours a week is enough time to figure out if you're passionate about a profession.
Gone are the days when every parent wanted their child to be a doctor or lawyer. The world has changed. Today, some blue-collar jobs even pay better than white-collar jobs. As a parent, you need to understand that everything happens in a good time. If your child is yet to make a decision, don't push them. Some things take time. And with each step, they'll be closer to figuring out what they want to do.
