When was the last time you asked your tween or teen what they wanted to do when they grew up? It’s a very common question, often coming from relatives or family friends. And the reality is that so many kids, even those about to graduate from high school, don’t know what they want to do with their lives.
And that’s perfectly okay!
I see teens every day at LEADPrep stressed out about what happens after high school. Our culture puts so much pressure on next steps that it can be overwhelming. We’re asking teenagers to make a decision that could potentially impact their entire future.
Our youth are amazing people, who are learning and growing every day. Part of that learning includes figuring out what they enjoy doing and what they’re good at. As educators and parents, we get to help them see how their skills and interests can potentially turn into a career.
Instead we’re expecting them to pull a career out of thin air so we can help them hone their skills and experience to meet that career.
I’m sure I don’t have to tell you that children’s frontal lobes don’t fully develop until the mid- to late-20’s. And yet we want our kids to make a decision about their lives when they haven’t fully matured.
That’s not fair to them and it puts so much pressure on them!
Many teens struggle to even know what their interests are on any given day because they change so much. It can be challenging to find a connection when teenagers and young adults adopt new interests and skills regularly.
On a recent podcast episode, I talked about this with Dr. Leigh Anne Taylor Knight, executive director and chief operating officer of the DeBruce Foundation. Among other things, the foundation is committed to helping individuals unlock their potential and find career pathways.
The DeBruce Foundation has a free tool, called Agilities, that can help individuals of any age identify their abilities and interests and match them with a set of agilities that will allow them to explore careers, identify what education is needed, and so much more.
We need to do more of this, offering our youth guidance in finding out what interests them instead of committing to a course of study that may not ultimately fit a future career.
And the free tools offered by the foundation can be used by teens, young adults, and even those well into their careers. So many of us have growth mindsets and love to continue growing and developing over the years. New interests and abilities might spark the desire for a career change.
We need to unpack more employment empowerment resources like the ones Leigh Anne shared, and the DeBruce Foundation’s ongoing research is making sure that happens.
Now if we can just get colleges and trade schools to get on board too!