The First Step A Parent Can Take to Help a Teen Find “Purpose”
Purpose is the combination of passion and the desire to achieve a goal with an impact bigger than self. Those who wake up each day with a purpose have a huge advantage over those who don’t. Research on purpose in youth by psychology professor Kendall Cotton Bronk finds that purpose-minded youth:
- Are more health conscious
- Have higher self-esteem
- Perform better academically
- Display more resilience
- Show more enthusiasm in all aspects of life
Undoubtedly, some teens will get more out of their adolescent years than others, and those who do are those who get help on finding purpose.
As a parent, there is one thing you must do to help your child get started. Help your child find a worthwhile goal to pursue outside the bounds of the normal expectations. While a singular goal is not the same thing as “purpose” per se, a worthwhile goal that stretches one’s ability and expectations is a formidable step for getting there.
Goals that wouldn’t meet this criteria are typical milestones like graduating high school or winning a state title. These are good milestones to reach, but are not outside the bounds of normal expectations for a teen.
On the other hand, if you can help your child find the self-motivation to pursue more out of the box goals like:
- Starting a business
- Getting a patent for an invention
- Growing vegetables and selling them to neighbors or at a market
- Launching a nonprofit and organizing volunteers
- Learning a trade such as carpentry, plumbing, or electrical work through an apprenticeship or similar program
- Participating in a youth aviation program or similar program that is driven by an innate interest they’ve shown through the years
- Organizing a mentoring program either through sports or academics to support the younger children in their community
These are just a few ideas, but I suspect you get the picture. If you can get your child on a path to pursue goals like these, finding purpose later on in life will come naturally. Furthermore, please consider my parent/child peer group on this topic in which I coach sports families through a 8 week program dedicated to living a purposeful life.