I’ve come to realize in parenting that it never gets easier. Each stage has its unique challenges. I’ve now entered the raising a teen stage while I still have a kiddo in the tween stage.
The tween enjoys fun games and crafts for holidays while the teen is acting like she’s too cool for all that baby stuff.
Now we have New Year’s coming. Last year, I did an article called New Year’s Resolutions with Kids: Why It Is Important. Some of the suggestions still apply, but New Year’s Resolutions with Teens are certainly going to be a little different.
So let’s take a look at how we can make New Year’s Resolutions work for our teens and how we can get them on board.
New Year’s Resolutions with Teens
New Year’s Resolutions are an opportunity for teaching kids about goal setting. Resolutions and goals are a little different but also very much intertwined with one another.
When we make resolutions, we are saying we are resolving to make changes in our lives. Goals are things we want to achieve and have a definite outcome. Both go hand in hand.
I’ll be honest I never understood goal setting when I was younger. I didn’t see the importance. I would be at a job interview, and they’d ask the “Where do you see yourself in five years?” question. I came up with a good line to satisfy them. I never saw the point, though. Heck, I wanted to be employed. That was my goal.
As parents, we can use Resolutions as a way to show the importance of setting goals and making changes in our lives.
Why do we need to set goals?
Goal setting provides a focus for life.
When kids are younger, they may set goals like to be nicer to my sister or to be better at soccer. Teens need to start learning that goals provide focus and solid ways to achieve the things they want in life.
We do it all the time as adults. We want to go on a vacation, so we start looking at how much it will cost and how we are going to save the money. Or we want a better job, so we find out the training, experience, and skills we need to get so we can qualify for that job.
The teenage years are a great time to start working on goal setting with them, and New Year’s Resolutions are a way to start. A new year is often a clean slate to start again.
So how can you help your teen think of New Year’s Resolutions?
How To Help Your Teen Set New Year’s Resolutions
Honestly, you may get the teen attitude when trying to set New Year’s Resolutions. You might get the shoulder shrug or the “I don’t know” comment. It may take some questions and prodding before you get them participating.
Need to get them on board?
Set an Example
Start talking to your teen about some of YOUR New Year’s Resolutions for the year. Tell them what you hope to accomplish and how. They need to see that Resolutions aren’t some stupid thing to write off. Adults make resolutions all the time.
If your resolution is to live a healthier life, share with your teen how you are going to make it happen and what that means. Maybe you want to exercise regularly so you set a goal to exercise 5 days a week for 30 minutes a day. Your resolution now has clear steps and a goal to reach.
Give Your Teen Some Suggestions
If your teen hasn’t set New Year’s Resolutions before, they may need some direction of things to consider. Here are some areas that may help get them started.
- Health and Fitness
- Money
- Personal
- Academic
Health and Fitness
Every year, adults set health and fitness goals. It is good for teens to think about this, too. Health and fitness is a life-long goal. Everyone needs to be mindful of creating healthy habits for life. The sooner they start consciously thinking about it, the better.
Teens might consider how they will include regular physical exercise or give up sugary drinks.
Money
It is never too early to teach kids about setting financial goals. Maybe your teen has a big purchase they want to make, like a car. Perhaps, they want money to use when they go out with their friends.
Help your teen form a resolution on how they are going to save their money or how they are going to make it.
Personal
What personal goals do you kids have?
Maybe there is a skill they want to learn. Do they want to become better at an instrument or sport? Develop some New Year’s Resolutions around things they want to do in the coming year.
Academic
Are your kids struggling in a particular area in school? Do they procrastinate when it comes to projects? What do they want to improve in at school or in their homeschool?
Since we are homeschoolers, I often have my kids think of things they want to learn or add to our homeschool. We find ways to make it happen.
Do teens need to choose goals from all these areas? NO.
These are some suggestions to help your kiddo come up with some resolutions. Depending on the resolution, they may only have one. One may be enough. They may choose a couple. It depends on your kid and how tough their resolutions are going to be.
Things to Keep In Mind When Setting New Year’s Resolutions with Teens
Teens not only need resolutions to work towards, but they also need actionable steps they will take to meet them.
My guess on why most New Year’s Resolutions fail is because people don’t plan the steps they are going to take to meet them.
Resolutions give you a springboard for what changes you want to happen; goals are the steps to take and how you can measure the success of that resolution.
If your teen wants to start their own YouTube channel, what steps are they going to do to meet that goal? What do they have to research? What equipment do they need? Are they trying to make money from it? There is a lot to consider.
Our goal as parents is to help them set realistic goals and help them write the steps they are going to take to meet them. They will carry this skill well into adulthood.
Teens also need to realize people evaluate their goals along the way.
Every few months, check in with your teen to see how they are doing on their resolution.
- Do they need help?
- Do they need to adjust their resolution?
- Have they met their resolution and ready to start another?
- Are they making progress?
- Are they stuck?
By checking in with your teen, you are teaching them how to reevaluate their resolutions and make sure they are doing what they need to meet them. They also see that others are there to help if they need it. They don’t have to try and do it alone.
New Year’s Resolutions are important for teens. It gets kids thinking about the changes they’d like to make in their life and how to make them happen. It empowers our kids to see they are in control of their lives, and they can set goals to accomplish what they want in life. It is a great skill, and gift, we can give our teens.
