Millennials Raising a New Generation

 

I just read Mannly Mama’s post today about being a Millennial and this quote got me thinking, “Work ethic isn’t a generation thing. It’s a parenting thing to some degree and an internal drive.”.

Millennials are accused of being a lazy, whiny, self-centered generation. I’m a Millennial but I’m none of those things, except when I’m PMSing. But why are Millennials so lazy and whiny and self-centered? I’m going to jump out on a limb and say it’s largely a result of parenting. Now I don’t want to blame shift but parenting plays a big role in what kind of adult we become, personal responsibility is the other part. (Thankfully, kids that have crummy parents can turn out to be pretty awesome adults.) But what kind of parenting results in lazy, whiny, self-centered human beings?

I’m a parent and I don’t want my kids to grow up to be assholes. I want my kids to become responsible, caring, and self-sufficient adults. Thankfully I had great parents that taught me to work hard, take pride in my work and care for others so I have a good model of how to raise my own kids.

Joe and I have talked about ways that we can begin to teach our boys financial responsibility by making chore charts, giving allowance, etc. I want them to feel that pride and joy you get when you’ve worked really hard to raise money to buy something you’ve really wanted. I want my boys to be thankful for what they have and have manners so they can express their thanks and gratitude. I want them to look for ways to give of their abundance and help those in need.

You know how they will grow up to be loving, caring, giving, hard-working and responsible?
By following my example.

They watch everything I do and emulate it. I can try to “teach” them how to be decent human beings but my actions speak louder than words. I want to become intentional about the life I lead so that my kids have a positive example of how to live theirs.

And I thought it was a tough job just keeping everyone alive and fed.