subject: Passion For Life: Showing Teens The Way [print this page] Does your teenager appear bored and clueless as to what he wants in life? Does he even have goals? Help him discover his passion for life using the five suggestions below:
1.Show them valuable resources online. The Internet can be a bane or boon to modern life. Teenagers are known to waste hours online playing games, socializing with both real life friends and strangers, indulging in gossip and other activities that don't help with their personal growth. You can't stop your kids from using the Internet, but you certainly can point them in the right direction. Look up helpful websites that give great tips and ideas about hobbies, potential careers, exploring one's hidden talents, discovering a passion for life, and the sort. Bookmark those sites and then share them with your kids. They could very well find their lightbulb moments when they peruse the pages of their sites and before you know it, they'll be setting goals and sharing with you their new dreams and ambitions.
2.Encourage them to read a wide variety of books. Start stocking up your home library or eBook readers with a plethora of books, with a focus on biographical, inspirational, motivational and similar self-help books. The biographies should be of people who made a difference (stay away from the sensational stuff) or made their mark in their respective niches borne out of a passion for life and their true calling. Reading about different people and significant events can help your youngster in discovering his own calling and setting goals that will lead to his carving his own niche.
3.Schedule a meeting with their guidance counselor or class adviser. A school authority figure is a good resource for finding out what your child has been up to and where he is excelling. For example, you might be pleasantly surprised that your usually-athletic child has recently joined the drama department. That's your clue that perhaps in the summer you could enroll him in acting class; that may be the start that he's discovered his passion for life! Just be careful when you get in touch with the faculty, or your kid might think you're snooping on him.
4.Travel with them. Don't stay put! There's so much potential in travel you learn about new places and new cultures that may very well spark your passion for life and help you discover something new about yourself. For example, going to exotic places that have a lot of ancient digs may help you realize a new love for history, archeology, and even paleontology. Visiting a foreign country may make you want to become an expert in that country's language and inspire you to take lessons when you get back home. Expose your teenager to all sorts of new and inspirational things. And don't worry about busting the budget; there are so many travel sites offering great tours at very affordable prices. You just need to know where to look.
5.Discover things together. You as the parent could probably benefit from a pick me up yourself, so why not partner with your teenager and both of you could discover or rediscover your passion for life. When planning your itinerary, setting goals and exploring your options, consult each other's opinions. You might be amazed to find out how much wisdom your own teenager possesses. Parents can learn a thing or two from their kids and vice versa, so spend quality time together and go on adventures. Go against the grain, listen to your heart, dare yourself to be different. Life shouldn't be boring so go spice yours up!
Give your teens all the resources that could help him discover what makes him tick and one day, he will find something that is right up his alley. Good luck.
