What's with Teenagers Nowadays?
My teenage son (almost sixteen) just got his first job. He has worked two whole shifts and is already complaining about how much he hates having a job and how it takes up too much of his time. By the time he takes the bus to school, attends school, takes the bus to work, works, and then takes the bus home, there is no time left for him. He is also complaining about how he needs to hang out with his friends etc. Funny how a few weeks ago he needed a job and needed money. Now this job (that only pays $7.50 an hour) is somehow unworthy of his time.
I spoke to another friend of mine whose son (roughly the same age) has been working for about two months now and has had similar complaints. The job takes up his 'me' time. The weekends are for him - to relax, play video games and sleep. He shouldn't have to work and he shouldn't have to use his own money to buy clothes or anything like that. He is already planning to quit the job (though his mother has told me that won't happen) to take the summer off.
It blows me away when I compare what it was like when I was that age. From the age of 15 on, I have pretty much always worked. My mother didn't have to push me to get a job. I wanted to have one. I wanted my own money and I wasn't afraid to have some responsibility. I often took a bus to work right from school and worked until 10:00 at night. I managed to keep up my homework and get good grades. I still managed to have time with my boyfriend and my friends, in spite of having a job. I bought most of my own clothes and things and I saved my money to pay for most of my college education. When I finished college (back in about 1988) and got married at the age of 20, my first full time job paid less than what my son now earns as minimum wage. Now I realize this is going back a few years, but come on. $7.50 as a student for a part time job is nothing to sneer at. What the heck does he expect?
It scares me when I think about how kids expect to have everything given to them these days. They don't think they should have to work for anything they have and they should be paid lots of $$$ from the get go. There's no such thing as working up to a decent pay or working hard to earn it. After all, just by being born, it is apparently their God-given right to be paid top dollar for minimal effort.
What the hell have we done to our kids???
My teenage son (almost sixteen) just got his first job. He has worked two whole shifts and is already complaining about how much he hates having a job and how it takes up too much of his time. By the time he takes the bus to school, attends school, takes the bus to work, works, and then takes the bus home, there is no time left for him. He is also complaining about how he needs to hang out with his friends etc. Funny how a few weeks ago he needed a job and needed money. Now this job (that only pays $7.50 an hour) is somehow unworthy of his time.
I spoke to another friend of mine whose son (roughly the same age) has been working for about two months now and has had similar complaints. The job takes up his 'me' time. The weekends are for him - to relax, play video games and sleep. He shouldn't have to work and he shouldn't have to use his own money to buy clothes or anything like that. He is already planning to quit the job (though his mother has told me that won't happen) to take the summer off.
It blows me away when I compare what it was like when I was that age. From the age of 15 on, I have pretty much always worked. My mother didn't have to push me to get a job. I wanted to have one. I wanted my own money and I wasn't afraid to have some responsibility. I often took a bus to work right from school and worked until 10:00 at night. I managed to keep up my homework and get good grades. I still managed to have time with my boyfriend and my friends, in spite of having a job. I bought most of my own clothes and things and I saved my money to pay for most of my college education. When I finished college (back in about 1988) and got married at the age of 20, my first full time job paid less than what my son now earns as minimum wage. Now I realize this is going back a few years, but come on. $7.50 as a student for a part time job is nothing to sneer at. What the heck does he expect?
It scares me when I think about how kids expect to have everything given to them these days. They don't think they should have to work for anything they have and they should be paid lots of $$$ from the get go. There's no such thing as working up to a decent pay or working hard to earn it. After all, just by being born, it is apparently their God-given right to be paid top dollar for minimal effort.
What the hell have we done to our kids???
posted by Jennifer | 6:21 PM
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