Kids Out of Control: Attitude Check Please

I have noticed some things in daily life and in my experience in dealing with numerous kids on a daily basis. I also have to wonder what is going on in the minds of the young today.

Have you noticed how extremely rude some kids are today? Have you seen how much little respect they have for authority? Have you ever seen or heard a child that you just want to spin around to look you in the eye and tell them to straighten up and use those things on the side of their head for something useful?

I for one am so tired of hearing kids say " I WANT", "I WANT IT NOW", "DO YOUR JOB", and so on. These little hellions need to realize that respect isn't given for nothing. It is earned. You must give respect to receive it. You cannot go through life making demands on people. You cannot expect to get anywhere without the help of someone along the way.

When does the realization hit that it isn't the world against a person, it is that own person against themselves. An occasional "Please" and "Thank You" or a "Yes, Mam" or "No, Mam" or the occasional "Yes, Sir" or "No, Sir" can go such a long way.

This brings me to my next thought. Have these out of control children and young adults had no guidance or are they really that out of control that nothing can be done with them? Are the parents just at a lose for what to do, and how to handle little Suzy saying, "I'm going anyway!" That they just say fine then "Go, do whatever you want."

We cannot just throw our kids out into the world with no support, or any idea of how to give respect to people in the everyday world. That would be the same as the old saying I'm sure your parents used when you were a kid "If Tom jumps off the Empire State Building, are you going to also?" Or taking our children out to the train tracks and watching for a train and then putting them down on the tracks and telling them "Now you stay right there." In doing that you definitely know that, that train will hit them. This is the same basic theory. You have to give kids, and young adults some common sense to work with. You cannot expect them to just know that they should say "Please" and "Thank You." You can't expect them to just know they can't stand on that train track, and yes the old speech of "Just because he did it, doesn't mean you have to", should still be used as an example to teach our kids how to be their own person and teach them how to make their own decisions in the situations where they need it.

That leads into another point. I know as well as other adults and parents, that you are not always going to be right by your child's side. You will not always be there to guide them. That is why it is so important not to just say "Do whatever you want" or "I don't care, go right ahead".

Take the time each day with your children, even if they are 6 months old or 16 years old to say Please and Thank You to them. Lead by example. Show the youth of today that bad behavior and attitude will accomplish nothing. Let them know that if they do something then there are repercussions for their actions. If they give you a reason to search their room, or to monitor their online activities then search their room, monitor them for the next 6 months to a year not just a day or two. Show them you are serious in your punishments. Show them if they want respect they first must give respect. Make them prove to you that they are helping mold themselves into productive, respectful young adults.

We as a nation and as a world need to seriously take into consideration that these young people with no respect for authority and no respect for each other, could in theory 20 or 25 years down the road be running our countries and states. We need to prep our youth for the possibility that their life and actions could affect thousands if not millions of lives. If we want to think that one day little Timmy could be President Timothy then we need to teach Timmy now how to behave and how to act now.

Parents do not let your children control your life, do not let them tell you what they are going to do and what they are not going to do. Stand up and be strong, stand up and let them know what the rules are. Teach them how to behave and how to give respect so that they in return receive it. Do not be afraid to let go some and let them prove to you that they have listened and learned.

One day when they are parents, they will find themselves saying the exact same thing to their children. They will look back on the moments when you were strong and even if it is just to themselves, they will thank you for giving them the tools they needed to be productive human