Most parenting advice is focused on how to raise our children. But should we perhaps be focusing on how to raise an adult?

 

While our job as parents is to love, care for, and teach our children, the purpose of our role is to raise a contributing member of society as our children reach adulthood. Well-intentioned parents have taken the reins in attempts to ensure positive outcomes for their children, but they’ve forgotten that if they are the driver, how will their children learn to find their way on their own? How did we get to this place? Why do we need to stop overparenting? Is there another way?

 

New York Times bestselling author, Julie Lythcott-Haims, answers these questions and shares wisdom and insights from her book, How to Raise an Adult, in this compelling episode of Mom Enough.

 
HOW WILL YOU RAISE AN ADULT?
In what ways have you overparented your children? What hopes and fears play into your overparenting? After listening to this interview, what three steps will you take to shift away from parental overinvolvement? How have you shifted your perspective on what it means to be the parent you want to be?

 
WANT TO LEARN MORE?
❉ YOUR TURN: WISDOM ON ADULTING FROM JULIE LYTHCOTT-HAIMS. New York Times bestselling author, Julie Lythcott-Haims, returns to Mom Enough with a new book on supporting our children in becoming adults. She shares wisdom, personal reflections, and the stories of other young adults in her ultimate guide for adulting, Your Turn: How to Be an Adult. With vulnerability and compassion, Lythcott-Haims offers insights and helpful tips to guide young adults to discover their unique selves and define their singular path to adulthood.

 

❉ JULIE LYTHCOTT-HAIMS’ WEBSITE. Learn more about Lythcott-Haims’ work, including her critically-acclaimed and award-winning prose poetry memoir, Real American. You can also sign up for her newsletter.

 

❉ THE POWER OF AGENCY: KEYS TO LIVING LIFE ON YOUR OWN TERMS.  Listen as psychologist Dr. Anthony Rao (Tony) highlights key principles from his book, The Power of Agency.

 

❉ UNLEASHING THE INSTINCT TO PLAY: PATHWAYS TO JOY, COMPETENCE AND CREATIVITY IN PRETEND PLAY. Psychologist Peter Gray shares his conclusions about what is missing from children's lives in terms of pretend play and exploration without adult direction in this Mom Enough episode.

 

❉ FREE RANGE KIDS: A CONVERSATION WITH AUTHOR AND ACTIVIST LENORE SKENAZY. When Lenore Skenazy wrote about letting her then nine-year-old son ride the subway alone in New York City, she never imagined the uproar it would cause. In this lively discussion with Marti & Erin, she reflects on how you can let the children in your life be free range kids.