If there is one piece of parenting advice I can share it is to talk with your kids. Ya ya, you're saying, you already talk to your kids. But do you really?
Kids will say and do the darndest things, won't they. Do you really know what your kid is like when outside the house, or do you just think you know what's in their heads? What's on the go with their friends. What's making them most and least happy?
I'm not trying to imply that I know my kids in and out. There are things I don't know and likely things I don't want to know. I think we've kept open lines of communication with our kids since they've been born. We've heard more than one difficult question. That means hearing some things you may not want to listen to.
If you close off one conversation without listening respectfully or by giving a brush off answer, you may not get asked again. Maybe the next question was a really important one - one that you
would give anything to go back and have the chance to hear and answer.
If you had an employee who was learning, would you not expect to be asked questions? Would you give partial or evasive answers, or would you give your best explanation? What if it was a particularly difficult question that you didn't know the answer to? Wouldn't you offer to find out and get back to that person?
I have absolutely no idea where I was going with this, other than you won't hear the good if you don't listen to the bad. Ya, right.
Kids will say and do the darndest things, won't they. Do you really know what your kid is like when outside the house, or do you just think you know what's in their heads? What's on the go with their friends. What's making them most and least happy?
I'm not trying to imply that I know my kids in and out. There are things I don't know and likely things I don't want to know. I think we've kept open lines of communication with our kids since they've been born. We've heard more than one difficult question. That means hearing some things you may not want to listen to.
If you close off one conversation without listening respectfully or by giving a brush off answer, you may not get asked again. Maybe the next question was a really important one - one that you
would give anything to go back and have the chance to hear and answer.
If you had an employee who was learning, would you not expect to be asked questions? Would you give partial or evasive answers, or would you give your best explanation? What if it was a particularly difficult question that you didn't know the answer to? Wouldn't you offer to find out and get back to that person?
I have absolutely no idea where I was going with this, other than you won't hear the good if you don't listen to the bad. Ya, right.
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