It’s the middle of March now…in no way too early to start talking with your kids about summer jobs and your expectations for them in that regard.
And just because the economy out there is difficult and competition for teenager jobs is high, that is absolutely no excuse not to get into the game! Welcome to the real world.
The more affluent your family is, the more necessary that your kids have real jobs & chores this summer! That is, unless you still want your kids mooching off you when they are 35 years old. A friend of mine told me a simple little phrase many years ago, and I believe there is a lot of truth in it:
And I am not talking only about money. This statement pertains to self-worth, confidence, purpose, etc.
 The Good Life |
Some parents though have the attitude, “Oh, let them be kids a few more years,” when it comes to their kids who are 10 years old and up. But we are letting them “be kids” when you consider that:
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It sounds to me like these people have it pretty good and yes- we are letting them be “kids.”
The pendulum has swung too far in our society with the creation of a protected group called teenagers. They have the intellect and ability to do many of the things that adults do, but many cry out “safe” like they are playing a game of tag with their parents, and the parents back off and demand almost nothing from them.
We had written summer contracts with our kids every summer during their growing-up years. Summer was not just 3 months of room & taxi service by the hired help a.k.a. Mom. Each contract was carefully tailored to each child’s abilities and age. Typical tasks for the younger kids included daily walking the dog, gathering all of their clothes to the laundry room each week, helping in the kitchen once each week, shredding documents from my office files, reading 3 or 4 books over the summer, etc. For the older kids, some of the tasks they did included washing cars, painting the back fence, painting the garage floor, etc. And when they were old enough by law to get a summer job, they all got summer jobs without fail. Every child knew without question that this was expected of them, and they had to save a portion of what they made for the future.
When the kids were young, we gave them an allowance, but as they got older, we instituted a salary cap just like in major league sports!
Working together as a family on some needed chores this summer is an outstanding way to build family unity!
So Moms & Dads, get out front on this summer-jobs topic. Start talking about this and your expectations now. Help them discover and develop a good work ethic, and they, your family, and quite frankly the country will all be blessed by it.
There’s nothing wrong with making a teenager get a job for their own gas, spending money,etc. Both myself and my husband held down part-time fast food jobs all year round through high school and college. Well, actually my husband is working full-time and going to college now. Our son will have to get a job if he wants to have his own spending money.
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Thanks for posting your very important article. I was raised to understand the value of a dollar. I had to work for the things that I wanted.
After high school, one of my friends was getting married and selected me to be one of her bridesmaid. Well, I had to work during the summer to pay for the dress. So here we are at the bridal shop, including the bride-to-be. I give my deposit to the seamstress. A month or so later, the bride calls off the wedding. Which eventually means, that after working all summer long to buy my dress, I end up losing my deposit. The value of a dollar suddenly means more to me, than ever before.
I couldn’t agree more. I grew up doing a lot of farm work: hoeing beans, detassling corn, putting up hay. And then many of us participated in American Legion baseball at night. I still remember when this man hollered a word of greeting to me clear across the courthouse square- for a job well done putting up hay for him a couple of weeks earlier. Honor & respect meant something. Thanks for your comment!
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My kid so badly wants a job, but right now, he’s seriously limited on what he can legally do. We are keeping our eyes open, though! Good thing he’s not afraid of hard work!
A kid who’s not afraid of hard work- that’s golden! We had similar difficulties with the legalities in the city too with summer jobs. There is always walking dogs and other more personal items. There are also all kinds of volunteer things that he can do too though without getting paid, leaving his reward in heaven
. My kids even stuffed church bulletins for free on occasion. Thank you for your post!