Do you often ask your child what he/she will be when they grow up? As a matter of fact- we all do.
But it is time we stopped asking them that question- here’s what you need to ask them instead. Ask them, if they will be the change makers of tomorrow.
Our culture has conditioned us to grow up wanting to be something without brainstorming our minds and asking our hearts what we really want to do. The question only gets heavier as you get older. There is no way we can teach our children reasons to be happy if we continue wondering and asking them.
What do you want to be when you grow up? What degree you want to achieve, or assuming them to carry on the work legacy.
What parents need to do instead:
- We need to set up open-ended questions which compel them to think in a broader way and open their horizons of imaginations.
- The questions need to be more exciting and discussion oriented about what their values are, and the many ways in which they might someday try to bring positive change to the world, whether through a traditional job, volunteer work, art, homemaking, and beyond.
So what’s a better way to get kids thinking about the kinds of lives they want to lead and what they want to do?
Ask them these instead:
Maybe the real questions to ask them are:
- “What is the world that you want to create?”
- “What problems do you want to solve when you grow up?”
- “What you want to change in the world or what impact you want to have for the greater good?”
- “What is something that you would like to change?”
You could ask your children what makes them feel good, such as helping others, writing, painting, inventing, discovering, being outside etc. Then you can ask them what problems or issues there might be with these things they love to do. What could make these experiences better for them or for others?
In this world of technology, our children will have experiences that we can only imagine and their career options will broaden with times. The true world changers are those who can see a problem, big or small and creatively offer suggestions for improvement.
We will always need great doctors, teachers, and engineers but even in these more traditional career paths, we need innovators, inventors and creative minds to keep progressing society, world and the planet forward. These are the questions that get small minds expanding and thinking outside the box.
We loved this piece by Adam Grant that expressed the same issue on the fundamental mind-shift that today’s parents need.
Don’t ask kids what they want to be when they grow up. It encourages them to define themselves in terms of work.
Instead, ask them what they want to do—and who they want to be.
You can aspire to be a person of integrity and generosity in any career.https://t.co/JdXURsbK4f
— Adam Grant (@AdamMGrant) April 3, 2019
Rohan Vyavaharkar
Mansi Zaveri
Rushita Sheth
Janani S Koushik
Rati Ramadas Girish
