Your teen is looking ahead and trying to figure out what they may want to do with their lives. They see tons of choices. There are so many angles with which they can approach this.  In fact it becomes overwhelming this way. Instead start with the past. Talk about the people in their past and let them know their history. Let them understand who they came from. The rich history of their ancestors can often forge a path to their future.

Walking into a grocery store when you have no idea of what you need is like finding a needle in a haystack. However, if you know you are making cupcakes that day, you go straight for the bakery aisle; and, maybe dairy.  This is the same with your teen’s future.  Ask them what their perfect job is like. Perfect. Do they get to have a tattoo? Do they get to sleep late? Do they get to work from home? Have them make a list of the perfect job and some of these choices may be inspired by their ancestry.

Once they have their list, their shopping list if you will, it becomes easier to shop for a future career. Which careers approximate their wish list or get them to their wish list? Now, it’s easy to eliminate things, hone in, focus.

Halloween. Celebrating the past so your teen can live a better future. Happy Halloween!

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1. Halloween, Insight Into Your Teen’s Mind

It’s always interesting to see the creative characters that your teen comes up with as they anticipate the Halloween parties or trick or treating as the case may be.  For the teen who is dumbfounded about a future career, it may be easier to pick a Halloween costume.  Finding common themes that a costume represents may give your teen some ideas as to what they might like to consider as a future career (e.g. nurse might be a helper, wolverine might be confident and in public service and those making teir own costume might be the next fashion designer).

Ask your teen questions about what the character is about, what they do, why they might want to impersonate them for Halloween.

This is a great discussion topic that is less stressful than the echoing, “What are you going to do with your life?” This frequently causes frustration and anxiety for teens, but a Halloween costume? Hardly any pressure at all.

Remember, the goal is to get your teen talking and thinking in a creative way about their future. This keeps you connected to your teen and makes you available for whatever is going on in their life.

Related posts:

1. Halloween
2. Your Teen’s Mind On The Money