A Parent’s Most Important Job - Prof. Jordan Peterson

You know, besides keeping the kid well fed and all that.

You may also be interested to know that Jordan B. Peterson's book “12 Rules for Life: An Antidote to Chaos” is finally available. You can find it here:

Don't miss out on his best selling first book “Maps of Meaning: The Architecture of Belief” which much of his lecture material is based on:

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[PsycheMatters]

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[georgecullins]

As a high school teacher of 22 years I see this happening more and more as time goes on. Parents seem to believe that their kids will turn out ok even if they don't do their job in raising them - it is very frustrating to see kids who have no guidance come to my class with little understanding of why others don't like them, and that their behavior is what makes that happen. I don't agree that this can't change, but it has to come from within the kid, and cannot be put on them from without. But please, parents, making your kid "like-able" is not selling out - it's socializing them in ways they cannot understand until it's too late - they need you! Get help if you need it - this is too important to ignore.

[spiritualjay]

The most important thing a parent can do for their children is to not just rely on the schooling system to teach them. Parents need to teach their kids and it's 100% more important than what any school can teach them.

[Godblessed]

Baloney- my kids struggled with friendships and were exposed plenty at church and school. They were good kids and not bratty. No matter how many parties I did or play dates I arranged, kids still found ways to ignore them. They eventually established good friendships with just a few or less. They are well acclimated into society and work and still great people. While this might happen for some, nothing is fatal with young children, their story is not over

[ASMRconKiki]

I beg to disagree about the inability to change. I talk from personal experience: my mother and her siblings grew up isolated, and she raised my sibling and I as very isolated too. I had much trouble bonding with people until I left and lived on my own. Now I have a social life, have no trouble interacting with others and be accepted in a group. I went from introvert to extrovert or somewhere in between, if that is even possible. Sometimes parents can hold you back, without meaning too.

[ThisCreepingLife]

I can relate to what Peterson is saying here. When i was a kid i was not allowed to play with other kids around the neighborhood. I grew up isolated my hole life, it's very difficult to me to socialize by now, I'm 26 yo and i don't have much tools to interact with people. Learn to rise your childrens properly, parenting is no joke, you cannot rely on improvising all the time

[timange]

My youngest just turned two when this pandemic started, and he is now four… lovely..
He does have an older sister which is good, but it’s still not sufficient for his curious/developing little brain!
I feel for the people that have passed due to Covid, but my heart goes out to all the kids to at are missing their childhood. So many potential memories that were never made.. 2-8 is such a fun and explorative time, and so many are being robbed of that.

[TheWrightVibes]

Yes, all the way through school I felt like everybody else was on the same page and I was in a completely different book. I had no idea how to fit in, and I was bullied for years. Thoroughly rejected by my peers. Now I’m in my 30s I’m a technically likeable person but the years of embarrassment and rejection have left me with a default setting of mistrust and fear of people outside of my small circle. I’d love to not be this way and be more open and I’ve worked on it a lot but there is definitely something in me that I just have to accept is not going to completely change

[gyffjogofl]

He's absolutely correct. I live that failure every day.

[tylerbonser]

I truly believe he is one of the most brilliant minds of our time.

[morriswilburn]

One of the most important things to teach a child, arguably THE most important, is that his decisions and actions will affect him, and it may be very pleasant/unpleasant.

[houseofpaine]

This is why when my daughter was that age I sent her to 2 different Pre-Ks 2 years in a row and the park and pool a lot so she can develop good social skills. U can be the smartest person in the room but if u can’t get along w other ppl u won’t get very far in life

[nanciecombs]

This happened to me when i joined school at the age of 3yrs.I was quiet and didn't know how to socialize.Puberty hit me so hard and my soul was empty and i was completely lost.At the age of 22 i found my soul.Even though I am still not good at socializing, I am glad i found my soul.I am happy with who am am and each day i better myself.

[Geenine]

As a family foster parent this is my no.1 concern... that these wee boys never get to overcome what they’ve been through. Their development and where it’s at isn’t their fault.. but as adults they will be held accountable for the choices others made or didn’t make for them.

[KathyRay]

As a firstborn of 6, I feel my parents (and other parents like mine....we grew up in neighbourhood where families had 4 or 5 children) kinda got this part because we, the children, were so close in age, we had to learn proper social interaction. Poor social interaction is especially a problem for 1) families where the mother is particularly not nurturing 2) families with one or 2 children and both parents work outside the home, and the caregiver is not always the same person, who can note problems and help correct them.

[tonytackett]

100% true . At 57 yrs old now I still struggle to find a happy medium between likeability and tolerance . Often thinking I wasn't cut out for this life . Self forefilling prophecies shaped the large majority of the outcomes in my life . Blurring the line between the meek and the cowardly, The brave and the insane . Honesty becomes secondary to likability . My faith is the creator of my suffering . Many criticize my faith calling it blind . I ask, what faith isn't blind ? If I had fact I wouldn't need faith . My faith causes me to question my own intent . In this way I value my faith in the will of God above all other things .

[Zanroff]

I interacted with children fairly often. I don't have any myself atm, but I try to get the kids to not be afraid to make mistakes. As an example, I run audio at my church and sometimes a young kid will sit with me and I let him or her push some of the buttons on the mixer. It's a small enough church that a mistake isn't a big deal, heck, I make mistakes a lot myself. My goal is to let them take a small risk and make mistakes in a controlled environment where people love them. I'm hoping it helps them be braver when they get older. It's something I wish people did with me growing up. I think they like being given the responsibility too. In the end, I want them to be more competent in facing the world when they reach my age than I am currently.

[MrRlwiley]

absolutely right. and that means keep them healthy, and well fed and clean and loved and laughed so when they are with their peers they are ACCEPTED. Peterson is spot on.

[nightshades]

I guess this explains why I have trouble playing well with others.

[katemiller]

Totally agree. When I was raising my children you always had the parents that were too lazy or unavailable for a play date (socialization) or they didn’t like people enough to be social with the other parents so their child could be around other children. I hear parents nowadays say I don’t want to be around other moms lol. It’s not about you it’s about the socialization of your child. He’s right about the ages 2-4. By 4 they have an idea how to share and be friendly if done correctly. Great points sir.