Raising Good Kids

Recently, I had an unfortunate professional interaction which left me scratching my head as to how the man I was talking with made it this far in life with the awful people skills he possessed. And its not as though he was 20 and in college, with youth and naivety to blame. No, this man is from the Boomer generation, and has a job where he is constantly interacting with people. Perhaps he got where he is by being a shrewd businessman, or maybe he knew all the right people at all the right times. It could be that he has just seen enough life that it has jaded him, but I think more likely he simply never knew any better, and no one's called him on it in a long time.

At really all came to a head when he attempted to deliver an apology. It went something like this:

     "I'm sorry if you didn't like my approach, but I'm right, and I told you last week I was right, so accept that I'm right."

What! That's not an apology. Why even put the words "I'm sorry" in that sentence? You obviously weren't sorry, nor do you think you were wrong in any regard! Now, of course, the "apology" was more specific to the situation than that, but to protect the identity of the guilty, I've brought it down to its most base level.

So, where did that situation leave me, you ask. I felt like I needed to try even harder to make sure my kids had a good foundation to start from, so that in 50 years, I don't have to worry about them treating people around them with the same callousness that I witnessed that night. I spent the next week pulling together thoughts on what they need to build up that foundation. I came up with 7 traits that I can help instill in them, as it seems lots of great things come in groups of 7. 


It all starts with honesty. No matter what else they do, they need to be honest, to themselves, to their peers, to their future spouses; honest. An honest character will let you have confidence in who you are and how you feel every day. It also lets those around you know they can trust you, and in turn be honest back.


For more of the 7 traits every kid needs, you could go to Camelot, where they dance whene'er they're able, but I hear its a silly place, so instead head over to the Dads Round Table (dadsroundtable.com), where you'll find the rest of my post, as I make my debut with the boys of the round table.