Parenting My Teen

This week’s show is short and sassy! Please grab a cup of coffee, tea or whatever you want to sip on and join me for awhile as I run through a hot topic that’s been on my mind lately.

I can sum up today’s topic with this statement:

Moms, stop fighting all of your kid’s battles It’s going to turn them into whiny, weak adults.

Think about it, if you always run to your child’s side, fight their battles and fix everything for them, how will they ever learn to stand up for themselves and figure things out with confidence?

During today’s show I am talking about how jumping in too soon to fight your child’s battles actually cripples them throughout their childhood and into their adult lives as well. I am also sharing a few tips on how you can help to boost your child’s inner strength and give them the tools that they need to fight their own battles and make good decisions.

I’ve been blogging about this topic for the past week and my most recent blog entry ‘Nobody Likes a Whiner‘ has sparked up quite a good conversation.

Be sure to listen to the entire show because I have a big announcement. I am hosting a totally Free Coaching Class on Thursday, February 2nd at 9:00pm Eastern. You can sign up for that class by clicking on this link–> http://www.reallifecoaching.net/class/

During the class I will be sharing strategies that will help you know when and how to step into or step back from the battles our kids face.

Teaching children and teens how to manage money is essential to their future as independent adults. Rather than teaching your teen how to be dependent on credit cards as they venture off to college, parents can be the ones that set their children on the right path by learning sound financial advice themselves and being good role models.

Today I’m pleased to interview Vince Shorb, founder of the National Youth Financial Educator’s Council, www.FinancialEducatorsCouncil.org. Vince is dedicated to increasing youth financial literacy through a variety of workshops, custom programs, educator training, curriculum, live events and online virtual learning centers.

Vince shares how he went from being a young real estate investor, living a comfortable life, to losing everything, all because he made a few common financial mistakes.

After this experience, Vince learned by speaking with other people that they, too, were making some of the same mistakes he made and this led him to the create the National Youth Financial Educator’s Council and wanting to help educate young people about finances.

Vince is also the producer of Money XLive (www.MoneyXLive.com) which is one of the nation’s largest, full-production, financial literacy events in the country that recently served over 1,100 youth and over 30 nonprofits. This event brings together celebrities, sport stars, and live acts to teach practical money matters in a full production concert venue.

During today’s show we discussed why we have the problem of financial illiteracy amongst young people today and he also shares some vital tips with us on how we can instill financial responsibility in our children.

Listen in as Vince shares tips on how we can start teaching our teens today to be financially savvy and also how we can help them start to build a solid financial foundation.

We all know how popular cell phones are with teens these days. How many times a day do you see teens either chatting or texting their friends? It can seem endless, right?

But with the advances in technology come certain threats or issues that can plague teens. In the case of cell phones, the biggest challenge is sexting and Aurelia offers parents some tips for helping their teens to avoid this dangerous trap.

Sexting is a term that describes when teens take texting messages to their friends one step further by sending revealing – or even nude – photos of themselves to other kids. Sometimes these are sent as a way to start a relationship but other times these images can be manipulated on the computer and sent around schools as a way to ostracize or make fun of a student.

Think it’s just girls sending these photos, in hopes of landing a boyfriend? Think again! Studies show 21 percent of teen girls and 18 percent of teen boys have electronically sent, or posted online, nude or semi-nude images of themselves.

So what can parents do?

Most importantly, talk to your children.

Discuss the dangers of having these photos online anywhere because once they are posted, they never actually disappear.

Know your child’s friends, both online and offline.

Talk about the consequences of sexting. Many states consider sexting a form of child pornography, which can lead to being labeled a sex offender.

If you need help talking to your teen but don’t know where to start, check out our special report, Real Life Guidance to Understanding Your Teen.

Thanks for joining us as we celebrate the 3rd Anniversary of Parenting My Teen!

School is starting again very soon – or maybe your classes have already begun – and there is always some stress associated with going back to school, no matter what grade your teen is entering.

My guest this week is a long time PMT Friend, Marie Ynami of Mommy Community.com Marie is a work at home mom of 3 from California. This school year, her youngest is in middle school, she has a high school senior and a teen that just graduated from high school.

In this episode we discuss tips for getting our teens back into the school mindset after a summer of fun as well as:

– when to meet the teachers;

– how to keep lines of communication open about your expectations during the school year and your child’s concerns;

– setting routines & limits;

– encouraging your child to get involved in activities.

If you need even more tips for helping your teen deal with the tribulations of high school, take a look at my ebook, Real Life Guidance to Helping Your Teen In High School. This guide shows you how you can allow your teen to have some independence while providing support and guidance to them as they make their way through high school, and the best part is that you can get started right now!

As parents, our biggest task is to raise our children to become responsible, independent, adult members of society. We spend so much time over the years keeping our kids safe and teaching them life lessons that we can only hope they’re listening to.

But at some point, after doing all this work, it’s time to let them experience their own independence and this can be very difficult for some parents.

This week my guest is my podcast producer, Christina Lemmey, who is a work at home mom and owner of Multimedia VA. She shared her concerns about her 6th grader going on a field trip to an amusement park and how difficult it is as a mother to cut the strings and allow her to go with a new group of friends and unknown chaperones.

I gave Christina some important tips for talking with her daughter about how she expected her to act and behave on the trip and I explained why it was a good thing her daughter didn’t want her mom to chaperone the trip (and no, we’re not blaming the tempermental tween hormones!)

It’s not too late to help plan an exciting summer for your teen. From now until June 30th I’m offering a 25% off discount on my School’s Out! Plan for the Perfect Teen Summer product. Get your copy NOW before the boredom starts!

Time is flying by.. summer is fast approaching and summer vacation is around the corner.

Even if your teen is very mature and you are comfortable with them staying home by themselves during the summer, for your teen it would be good if he or she has some activities planned that will keep them busy and out of trouble.

This week I’m joined by Mary Lutz of Professional Virtual Business Solutions and we chatted about our own kids’ graduations and how fast the school year went. We also spoke about what we’ve done with our own teens during the summer break and gave lots of great ideas for your teens.

Not that your teen needs supervision or a baby sitter, but your teen needs something that will encourage thinking, give her some responsibility, accountability and guidance. Here are just a few of our suggestions for keeping teens busy:

Volunteering (most schools require 100 community service hrs. so volunteering over the summer is a good idea.)

Getting a Summer job or a creative self employment idea – earns money, gain some independance & teaches responsiblility. Using resources that your city has available.

YMCA/community centers – some off free programs for teens, sporting events

School’s Out! Plan For the Perfect Teen Summer Toolkit

Whatever you and your teen plan for the summer – I hope it will be a safe and enjoyable one!

Can you believe that summer is almost here? Seems as though we were just waking up our teens on the first day of school and now we’re contemplating how to keep them busy during the summer months!

Today I’m pleased to interview Shonika Proctor of Renegade CEOs.com. She is an author, speaker, award winning blogger and experiential teen entrepreneur coach based in Washington, DC who has been encouraging teens across the globe to pursue their wildest dreams and tap into their innate talents.

With the state of the economy today, teens and their parents have to get more creative with their summer job choices, especially since the typical retail and restaurant jobs are being filled by over-qualified candidates. Shonika will explain how parents can determine if their teen should even being pursuing the path of entrepreneurship.

You can also get your hands on The Teen C.E.O. Blueprint & Home Study Course and your teen can learn how to start a business, publish their own book, become a public speaker and more.

Once our tweens cross that magic bridge into adolescence, one of the most difficult challenges facing parents is talking with our teenagers. With so many difficult yet important life choices facing teens today, it’s more important than ever that parents stay involved in their kids’ lives and TALK about the consequences of these choices.

My guest this week is Dr. Daisy Sutherland, aka Dr. Mommy. Daisy is a Doctor of Chiropractic by profession and a homeschooling mom to 5 beautiful children. Her passion is to teach the youth of today the importance of values and respect.

Daisy just launched a brand new program, Reserved Only, which is a 12-week structured e-learning course that teaches parents how to discuss the subject of sex and abstinence with their teen.  Find out how Abstinence is bigger than just “Sex” and also tune in to discover what the 3 R’s are.

If you are struggling with how to teach your child about abstinence and respecting their own bodies, visit the Reserved Only website and take advantage of the special introductory price offer.

Our good friend and author Vanessa Van Petten from her new site http://www.radicalparenting.com/ also joins us to tell us about the new site and all that you can find there. Stop by to see if you are radical enough and be sure to take their Radical Parenting Pledge.

At long last I’ve come out of hibernation with a new podcast for you! This week I’m sharing an interview I did with Katy Lee when I was a guest on her Adventures in Parenting podcast. Katy is the mother of 3 teens and we had a very indepth conversation about how to stay connected and involved in our teens’ lives.

Some of the topics we covered included:

how to open up the lines of communication when  your teen just wants to be alone

how to create an open and non-judgemental environment where your teen will feel comfortable sharing thoughts, ideas, and feelings

how to discuss tough topics such as sex, drugs, and alcohol

and the Do’s and Don’ts of conversing with your teen

Our good friend and author Vanessa Van Petten from On Teens Today also joins us with some tips on choosing the best “car music” that teens and parents both can agree on.  Listen in for her great advice!

If you’re tackling a tough challenge with your own teen, drop me a note or leave a comment here and I’ll try to address your concerns in a future episode.