John Bishop’s Goal Setting for Students.com

Legacy to Your Children

It's 6:30 at night and you just got home from a long day at work, but the day's not over yet. First, there’s dinner, then homework and don't forget the chores. And, you have to finish a proposal for an important meeting tomorrow morning. Add a little stress from the monthly bills and the possibility of your company being downsized and you have pressures of the far too many US families.

In addition, your children live in a rapid paced, MTV world where they are bombarded with media messages that define success as “bigger, better, faster,” and “you can have it now – and not have to work hard to get it.” All too often the messages they see are that you can lose weight with a pill, flatten your stomach muscles in only five minutes a day, or learn how to play soccer from a 20-minute video. Your children are growing up in the world of instant gratification, and shortly, they will be entering the school of hard knocks.

What can you do? You want the best for your children and you want to give them the tools they need to succeed in school and in life. The problem is time. The solution is giving your children the tools they need to invest in their future. Those tools consist of three things:

1. Clear and positive character development traits

2. A thorough understanding how to set and achieve goals

3. A strong desire to take more ownership of their education

These tools will help your children define what is important in life, how to minimize excuse, how to take more responsibility, and how to take action on their dreams. Your children will learn that success takes time, planning and a strong desire, and action. Success takes commitment. Success is helping others.

Toni Morrison, the fist African-American women to receive the Nobel Prize for Literature (1993) has stated “Long before I was a success, my parents made me feel like I could be one.” With these life tools your children will learn to believe in their abilities to be successful. They will grow up to be healthy, productive, caring adults with a good self - image and a positive outlook toward their future.

Your legacy to your children – positive character traits, goal setting techniques, and educational ownership – are the tools they need to succeed. With them your children will answer a resounding “yes” when asked, “Are you giving your best effort to today’s activities?”

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John Bishop is the Executive Director of Accent On Success® an organization dedicated to giving parents, teachers, and other caregivers the tools they need to help children succeed in school and in life. He is the author of Goal Setting for Students®. http://www.GoalSettingForStudents.com