As we push through day after day of raising young children, we sometimes forget that the end goal is to raise them into awesome adults. But how do you really do that? You can read all types of books, watch multiple parenting shows, and listen to the foremost experts and still feel like you’re lost from time to time.
I gave this some thought. And when it comes down to it, there are really just three basic things that I want my kids to have as adults. Could those things be a nice home, a fat bank account, or an amazing ride? No, not really. Follow along below to see what I want my kids to have as adults:
A Spirit of Giving
I want my kids to have a real heart for giving to others. My wife Ronnie and I are true believers of sowing into the works and dreams of other people that we meet, and I would love for my kids to feel the same way. I think that when you do good things for other people, then good things naturally happen back to you. And that you’ll never have to worry about being alone or in need of help when you’ve lived a life of helping others. We want our kids to know that they are blessed and that they have a responsibility to give back.
The Formula for Reaching Success
My idea of the formula for reaching success is being able to work extremely hard and having an ability to consistently learn. If you’re open to learning and open to working, then I think you can succeed. The path to success may not be a straight line and there may be obstacles along the way, but I honestly think you’ll reach your destination in the end. This is something that we try to instill in our kids. We often tell them to do your best, be open to criticism, and be open to learn. They’re still working on the part about being open to criticism (LOL), but we’re trying to work on that.
The Ability to Love
Through the work that we do on our website BlackandMarriedWithKids.com, we’ve seen the real value of love and partnership. I really want my kids to know that feeling, too. I want them to feel loved, like I love their mother. And I want them to have the ability to love others. Sometimes when we face challenges, when we’re hurt by others, and when our trust is broken, we begin to erect barriers and lose that ability to freely love others. I don’t want that for my children. So we try to encourage them to develop their feelings. We try to explain and exhibit what true love is through a model in our marriage. And we try to give them love on a daily basis, so they don’t have to search for it in the wrong places.
What three things do you want your kids to learn as they grow up?