You probably have specific targets for your business which are fully developed with strategies, objectives and goals. But do you have a clear and written target for your life’s most important “direct reports”….your children?
Who will they be at age 10? Age 18? Age 25? I’m not talking about what interests they will pursue or activities they will engage in, but rather the kind of people they will become.
Here is a question for all you parents: When do you start preparing for the release? That time when your kids make the jump from your home to a home of their own, to a college campus, or (in the case of my son Dylan) a sixteen hour flight away on the east coast of Australia.
Our family has spent the past week at a remote surf spot in mainland Mexico. Traveling with just the 6 of us is not the norm, as we usually end up bringing other family or friends. But this vacation had to be different.
Numerous studies have shown us that many young adults are struggling as they make their first pilgrimages into the workforce, marriage, and parenting. One major cause of this, according to researchers, is that they are not equipped with the real life skills required to navigate successfully through these significant changes.
This is a parenting issue.
Just a few weeks ago, my wife Sheri and I had the privilege of leading a parenting workshop at the Building Champions Experience. We called the presentation, “Are you Raising Kids or Growing Adults?” I think the question is worth pondering.
For those of you who know me, you know I like to play! My favorite hobbies have always included some kind of a board under my feet. Surfing is my greatest passion, but I also enjoy snowboarding and carve and long boarding through the streets of Lake Oswego. I get all kinds of funny looks and terse comments from neighbors, who must think I am some kind of teenage troublemaker as I skate by with my kids and their friends.
I’m not alone in this, either. Many times at the beach, on the mountain, or in the streets you will find my colleagues and their kids right there with me. Coach Barry Engelman has recently taken up snowboarding with his boys, and he also surfs with me from time to time. Coach Steve Scanlon can often be found skating in local parking garages at 11pm, or at Mount Hood boarding with his kids.
Anyhow, our immature hobbies are not the point of this post.
So what is my point? That I hang out with boys in men’s bodies? Maybe so, but I believe that there is some life-giving magic to be found in playing outdoors at any age.
Today has been a wonderful day! It began with an early morning meeting with a friend who has been mentoring me for the last 13 years. Recently, my time with him has been less frequent, but whenever I am with him I learn and grow. Our meeting took place at my favorite local coffee house here in Lake Oswego. He was pouring into me.
After an hour and a half, he left, and one of my sons came by. He is 17, and is finishing up his senior year with some classes at our local community college. The purpose of our one on one time was to connect and take a look at his plan for the next quarter. It was an opportunity for me to listen to him and to connect at a deeper level. I was able to pour into him.
The reason I wanted to share with you about my morning is to challenge you to think about how you will spend your time this year.
Are you proactively scheduling one on one time with those you care for most?
