Most parents will hate me for this! I would hate myself too if I had the same belief they have.
By: Lukasz Laniecki
Tags: Happiness, Life, Family, Success, Parenting

Most parents will hate me for this! I would hate myself too if I had the same belief they have. Lukasz Laniecki Follow Jan 6, 2018 · 3 min read

Why is it that almost all parents want their children to enter “practical” professions?

Because they’re selfish and care more (or only) about their own needs being satisfied, rather than their children’s needs being satisfied.

They want a peace of mind, have something to brag about, they don’t want the embarrassment, they care about the good name of their families, they care about what other people will say about them as parents, etc., because they make this classic mistake of assuming that how their children will fare in their lives says a lot about them and their parenting, or even about the entire family, and they fear that if their children will have no successes in the conventional sense they will be judged by people and that people will conclude that they sucked as parents.

They want to live and then die knowing that their children are safe (have stability, money, etc.). What’s wrong with wanting their children to be safe (have stability, money, etc.), in other words wanting the best for their children? At first glance, nothing is wrong with that (all parents think it’s a noble goal). They love their children and want the best for them. How could there be something wrong with that? But there is a catch. Who should define what ‘best’ is? Parents? Why? Why parents? Why not the child? It’s their child’s (by now adult child’s) life.

They want this and they want that. They, they, they. The best part? Almost no parents in this world realize how much it is about them. They use all those clichés about parental love, wanting the best for their children. How about wanting the best for themselves? Don’t they (the parents) want the best for themselves? Of course they want the best for themselves (the peace of mind, the success stories to share, etc.) and those needs usually and unfortunately go first. They’ve bought into a ludicrous idea of happiness in life and now they feel entitled to have a say in their adult! children’s lives.

And because they’re narrow minded and assume that only things which are tried and true can bring success.

And because they erroneously assume that the fact that they don’t know anybody who made money doing this thing means their children will fail. Which is absurd if you think about it! It only means that they don’t know anybody who made money doing this thing. Period. They know very little about the future (they only assume they know a lot), they can’t say with certainty what will happen if their children will choose a different path (that it will be a disaster, etc.). And if they claim that they can, if they are prophets (so freaking good at predicting what will happen) why don’t they tell those young people how to win the lottery? They know for sure that the path of an artist is a poor choice for people, so they should also be able to say what the winning numbers will be.

And because they erroneously assume that their children should be “successful” (attain this conventional success) right from the get go, and only a “practical”, well paying, prestigious career can guarantee this. That struggle is bad. That their role is to make sure their children will end up having a “practical” career.

And because they make this classic mistake of assuming that it will be on them to financially support their children for the rest of their (the parents’) lives. This is bullshit! Who said that it will be on them? They (parents) told this bullshit themselves. They invented this narrative which now forces them to avoid this scenario at all costs, and they don’t see how they should leave their adult! children to their own devices and let them take over. No, they need to be Batmans who will save f*cking Gotham from a tragedy. This is so pathetic.

Wake up, parents!