Teaching Teen Privileges
Life is full of privileges and many teenagers think that these privileges they have in their lives are rights. But nothing is further from reality. Teenagers need to begin to realize that what they consider a right is a privilege they must work to maintain or earn.
For example, this can be understood when teenagers need to enter university. Some college students have more privileges than others: some students will always struggle financially to pay for tuition, while others don’t have to worry about college money because of everything their parents have.
A good setting for learning about privileges
This scenario we just discussed in the previous example is ideal for understanding about privileges and teenagers. It is the ideal setting to talk to teenagers about privileges and so that the teenager can understand those who “have” and those who “don’t have”.
Life is like a ladder: there will always be someone above and someone below. So it’s important to take advantage of what we have today and not think about what we don’t have yet. For example, young people who work while studying at university are a good example of what it means to learn about privileges.
Working during college to understand privileges
Working through the university years teaches young people extremely valuable skills that they will take to their professional careers, such as handling multiple responsibilities at the same time, prioritizing, managing time, and being financially responsible.
Those who have to worry about the cost of college can really understand the value of money and are less likely to neglect things.
Adolescents who receive everything from their parents, such as money or material things, for example, or those who do not have clear rules, will not understand what privileges are and will think that everything they have is their rights just because they are in this world, a thought very tyrant that will condition bad behavior.
Also, working to support yourself through college allows young people to be busy, and busier people are generally happier. There is less time to participate in unproductive activities, less time for substance abuse or procrastination and other mindless distractions.
Parents who give their children everything are a clear example of today’s parents who need to control and fix everything in their children’s lives, rather than focusing on raising resilient children who can deal with frustration. A privilege is something that must be understood in order to understand its value.
Privileges and Comparisons
To understand privileges, it’s important (although it can be difficult) not to compare yourself with others. Seeing that others have more money, better culture, more friends, a bigger house, objects of greater value than ours… all of this can be difficult for many teenagers. But it is necessary to leave the comparisons aside.
By understanding about privileges, it is possible to understand that things must be achieved by the person themselves, that nothing is achieved without work and, above all, that “without effort, there is no reward”, thus focusing on the effort involved to achieve things .
For example, if a teenager wants extra money, he or she will have to work to get it by mowing a neighbor’s lawn every week or doing some other activity.
You might want to remind your teenagers that they shouldn’t be so quick to judge their peers. We don’t know other people’s stories. They may not be working or have financial challenges, but they may be emotionally drained.
There will always be someone who has more or something better. It doesn’t define who you are. Our experiences create character and realism. Our experiences are just part of our story.
The envious never win
Comparing ourselves to others is just a trap that will keep us from feeling good about ourselves. It is necessary to accept ourselves for who we are and not remain trapped in resentment and jealousy about other people’s privileges, as this is going nowhere.
Your neighbor’s grass is always greener, regardless of your luck in life, whether you are rich or poor. That’s why it’s essential to remind teens that what matters in life is gratitude.
These tensions over privilege are good and demonstrate an interest in doing good and succeeding. Stress shows that young people care and is a heightened state of arousal that triggers a response to make things happen. The envious ones never win.
