Childhood Success

[Kyle]

What are your goals for your children? I know you want them to be happy. We all say that- "As long as they're happy, I'm happy." But I suspect that most people aren't going to be happy if their kids is happily committing white collar crimes and embezzling money to live in a giant mansion.

So the question goes beyond just "Are they happy?" Whether you would communicate it to your kids or not, what life goals would you want them to achieve for you to consider them successful? Graduation? Marriage? Financial security?

[Tahlvin]

Happy, healthy, and productive members of society, using their gifts and talents to make the world a better place.

Marriage and kids, if that's what they want. But to be honest, being the only son of an only son of an only son (back about 4 generations or so), I would like me son to have kids and carry on the family name (and preferably >1 boy to end the generational cycle of the same considerations). I would like them to graduate from college, mostly because that will position them for better jobs and financial security. And I want them to be financially literate, because they're eventually going to inherit a decent amount from my wife and I, and I don't want that to turn into a bad thing for them.

[Phoebe]

This is the transcript of what I am hearing at this very moment:
"Jim, are you Jewish?"
"No, I am Japanese."
"No you're not."
"Yes, because I know more Japanese than Jewish."
"That doesn't mean you're Japanese OR Jewish."
"Yes it does. I read it. In a Book of The Truth."
"Mom, if I give Jim food coloring will it poison him?"
"Do you normally put it in frosting?"
"Mom, if I give Jim water with food coloring in it, will it make him sick?"
"What do you think?"
"Can I drink THIS much food coloring in my water?"
"Try it and see what happens."

We will have to try it and see what happens. I hope they don't have to deal with a terribly violent world, and bad effects of climate change. Dinner is done soon, that's all I know at this point.

[Iantha]

I want my daughter to graduate college. She hasn't expressed any interest in the trade school so college it is. Whether it's right after high school or later in life, I want her to have a career and not struggle as much as Paul and I have.

[bralbovsky]

It's terrible and cruel, but I raised all of my children to be superheroes (secretly).

I tried to equip them with confident self images, so they evaluate themselves independent of others' opinions (So far, Check, even if it's not great for careers)

I privileged useful over happy, though that was a close second. (Check, and cyclical check)

I tried to make sure that when (not if, why is it never if?) they were going to make enemies, that they did it on purpose, making choices they believed in. (Jury still out, though eldest made a great commencement speech that infuriated all the right people and validated all the right people)

Fortunately, they all escaped as adults with player character level stats, and minor super powers. If they hadn't made it, I'd feel guilty and awful, but I refused to let them sleepwalk through their lives as the tools of some evil genius, like so many people I know.
With the coming singularity(ies), I wanted them to have options (surrender included), and I stand by my choices despite their likely consequences.

[Eliahad]

All I'm going to have for children are the students that I teach, but my goals for them are:

You are a human and you have a voice, you don't have to shout to be heard, you just have to say it.

It's not a sprint, anything can be overcome if you have the determination to think, understand, and execute what you what you want to have happen.

Getting it the first time doesn't mean you're going to get it every time.

Practice is when you strive for perfection, performance is when you let everything go and trust your preparation.

If you don't practice confidence, it's not going to be there when you need it.

There are exceptions to everything, if someone is talking in absolutes, they're probably wrong. Know what is a fact, and know what isn't. Even Pitch and Rhythm, which are the only musical things that have correct answers, only have correct answers in very specific situations. An E on the tuner is an E...until it's in the middle of a C major chord.

Oh, and I try and teach them how to play the cello good, too.


Now if I could only learn these f----- things myself.

[Phoebe]

Based on what has been said above, I think I'm going to let you guys take over and parent my children from this point forward.

[El Jefe]

Don't do it, Phoebe. This is how the #DadJoke virus spreads. THIS IS HOW THE WORLD ENDS.

[poorpete]

Completely selfish success is being able to get rich and make daddy and mommy retire early and live comfortably.

But being nice and empathetic is tops. At 1 and 5 years old, feel we're a long way off from careers, but when the daughter says "I want to help people when I grow up" we are happy. Sometimes she wants to be a singer, but I think that's because she loves singing, at the same time, at 5 has no interest in things like pitch.

[Phoebe]

[Phoebe]