The thought of this is actually scary for a lot of parents. Their baby is their baby no matter how old they are. But at some point in their life you’re going to notice them turn from a baby to a young adult, and it’s your job to help them through the transition. All of the sudden they’re going to have big world problems, and it’s usually the time when their stress levels are highest. Because adjusting from the safe world of high school and the warm embrace of family life, to the working world is just as scary for them. All of the sudden they know they’ve got to step up and leave their old life behind to start a new one. So, if you know your little one is about to start going through the change to a young adult, here’s how you can help them to ensure they turn into the best person they can be.

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Career Focus

At the age of turning into a young adult they’re either going to go in two directions, both will take them straight to a career. The first is to escape the potential hell hole of education and go straight into a job. So many more people are choosing to do this rather than staying on in education due to things such as a desire to earn more money, a hate of education, or something has come up that is both educational and financially appealing, such as a paid internship. Going down this route is completely fine, but a lot of parents actually seem to be putting their children off the idea as most parents think going as far as possible in education is the most important thing to do. It’s not the case. Going straight to work can take you down a route that will eventually take you to the top of a company, earning big money that staying in education might not have. Whilst education is important, companies are sometimes more interested in the work experience you have, so the younger they start, the better!

If they’re choosing to stay in education then it’s important to understand how hard it might be for them. Whilst still trying to juggle young adult problems such as relationships, part time work, owning a car etc. they’ve still got a ton of deadlines to meet. The work they’re doing is going to be so much harder than the lower level of education they’ve already got, so their stress levels are going to be through the roof. If you want to support them, comfort them as much as you can rather than adding to their stress. If you play the role of a shoulder to cry on, or a friend to talk to, you’ll have a much more open relationship.

Life Lessons

There are so many life lessons that a parent can teach their child through their time under their care. Right from the very moment they’re born they’re learning from the things around them, and the main thing around them is going to be you. As they get older they’ll be looking to you for guidance more than ever before, and it’s important that you set the right example if you want to be the most successful young adult possible. They can also gain vital life lessons from experiences they’ll have outside of family life. Make sure you’re sending them on things such as school trips, getting them involved with clubs outside of the school, and just giving them the best life experiences possible. Experiencing the outside world is one of the best ways to help them to mature into a young adult. As for what you can do, just working hard in your own life and showing dedication and commitment to all that you do is going to set a good example for them. They already realise how many things you do for them which is a way of showing dedication to your family. Teach them how to be a good person, hard working, kind, loving etc. Just all the qualities you believe an adult should have, make sure your child does.

Money Management

Money management is something that even us adults seem to struggle with grasping the concept of, but for a young adult it is even harder. Things are fine when they just have a little part time job around school, but as they get older they’re going to have to use the money for real world things like driving or paying board. This is where money management skills are tested, and often young adults just don’t have any at all. Try and teach them the importance of savings from a young age. The younger they are when they start saving, the better off they’re going to be as they get older. You also need to try and teach them how to budget their money and when to say no to things. Young adults are so bad for making a million plans each month, then wondering why they’ve got absolutely no money left. It is also the reason why so many young adults are now getting themselves into debt!

Adult Problems

Adult problems are some of the most scary to deal with. Just like you’ll be watching them transition to a young adult, they’ll be noticing it themselves, and they’ll find it rather worrying. The main young adult problem they’ll get is unhappiness at work. It is something we all struggle with, because at the end of the day who wants to spend all their time at work, especially young adults who are fresh from the lovely life of school hours. They might also start to struggle with things such as relationship breakups. They happen to all of us, and suddenly they’re a lot more serious than they silly school relationships. As a young adult they’re going to actually be experience real love. Always make sure you’re there to support them through any kind of trouble like this, it’ll most likely take them months to get over it!

Do you feel as though you’re ready to let your baby turn into a young adult now?

See you next time!