Yes, it is that time of the week, again. Time to stroll on over to ParentSociety.com and check out my latest article “I Just Don’t Need My Kids to be Phenomenal” (if you would be so kind). You might say it is a continuation, or short conclusion to my last venture “6 Kinds of Sports Parent: Which are you?”. Ok, ok, here is the teaser…
Why must our kids be phenomenal?
Don’t get me wrong: My kids are amazing! From the moment they made their first spit bubble, everything they did, said, accomplished, or pooped out was remarkable … to me. And this, in my opinion, is exactly as it should be.
But sometimes…
Go here to read the rest. Did I mention it is short? I just had to get in the last word. That is so like me…
Looking for the Sweet Spot 
I always feel so bad for the kids that are belittled by their parents. I think it’s important to try hard and give 100%, but I think it’s also equally important for the parent to make their child feel good no matter what the outcome. GREAT article!
Thank you so much! I was not sure about writing it – I don’t want to be on a soap box, but I wanted to make the point.
It is a good point to be made! I think it will make parents think twice about HOW they support their kids. My daughters play soccer and I loved your last article… I will make sure I tell them how much I enjoy watching them, etc… It’s important. Thank you.
Wonderful post! I feel the same way. I think people expect way too much from their kids and they do it to feel better about themselves. How is that your kids job? If you are disappointed with your life why don’t YOU do something to change it and let your kid enjoy life, make mistakes, learn from them and maybe do something fun that doesn’t have to end with a trophy!
Yes, exactly! If they win the trophy, fine – but, it should be their achievement and not the parents’. My kids are so much happier when I just support and cheer for them. As I said in my last article – “You were awesome, I love to watch you play”. Works every time!
I believe we all have a tendency to want to duplicate ourselves by creating children. This is finally our opportunity to correct any mistakes we made earlier in life by fixing them through our kids.
Also, we must have our kids at their best so the rest of society doesn’t view us as failures. I didn’t realize how important public perception and acceptance were to my parents until I became one myself.
Then I noticed how much I didn’t want people to think MY kids were, dumb, ugly, delinquent, nor psychotic, because it makes ME look bad.
I’m glad that I know deep inside that everyone is an individual and that as much as we try to protect our kids from everything, the best we can do is to teach them and keep our fingers crossed. 🙂
Well said! I think there is a lot of finger crossing in parenting, We can only do our best to teach and support them! Thanks for reading!
100% agreed. Recently, I was watching this singing-contest kinda reality show for kids . When one particular kid didn’t really perform well, his mom just glared at him. It was really apalling to see!
Yes, that is exactly the kind of thing I am talking about. I guarantee Mom glaring will only create more pressure for the poor kid and make it even more difficult to perform well!
Absolutely !