4 Ways to Prepare Your Child For Adulthood

One of the best things you can do for your child is to prepare them to take on the real world by themselves. However, it can be difficult to remember to teach them everything they will need to know in adulthood. Although you can’t be expected to teach them everything possible, we’ve created a list of things you can do to help get them prepared to go off on their own.

Give Them Responsibilities

Children who aren’t given a lot of responsibilities growing up, will feel overwhelmed by all the responsibilities that adulthood brings. As they grow older and they can handle doing more things themselves, it’s important to allow them to take on more of their tasks. Although it can be hard to initially give them control of certain things, it will be better for them to make mistakes when you’re around to help them. 

One of the responsibilities you can start giving them in high school is scheduling their own doctor appointments. If they need a new doctor, have them search ‘Pediatrician Glendale AZ’, for example, and have them find a provider. This way they know how to find one for themselves in the future. As they go off on their own, young adults often neglect doctors’ check-ups because they may not have prior experience scheduling them over the phone or fitting them into their busy schedules. Offices offering services such as telemedicine makes it easier for them to fit appointments into their schedules.

Basic Life Skills

It’s important to teach your child all the skills they will need to take care of themselves once they are out of the house. You don’t want your child to go off to college and have no idea how to do their own laundry or cook a meal for themselves. Although asking them right now to do their own laundry or help cook a meal can be difficult, they will be grateful in the long run. Before they go off on their own, slowly encourage them to do more of the tasks with you than you normally do for them. 

Teach Coping Tools

When your child sets out for life on their own, they will likely be faced with many more challenges and failures than they are used to. As their parent, it’s important to prepare them for

these challenges as best as you can. Although you can’t possibly guess every kind of obstacle they will come across, make sure to give them tools so they can handle whatever they will have to face. When challenges come up while they’re still young, you can use this time to teach them emotional coping skills. Being able to keep calm under pressure, control impulses, and handle emotions will all be useful in the rest of their lives. Not having these tools will make this time on their own much more difficult for them.

Money Management

As they go off on their own, it will likely be the first time they will have a significant income in their life. With this being the first time they have extra spending money, they can be not sure how to use it wisely and this can lead to overspending. As they are growing up, giving them an allowance and then guiding them about how to use it can prepare them for this time. Have them use their allowance to pay for small items they want so they get a better idea of how to spend their money. Encouraging them to save part of their allowance when they are younger can instill their need to save part of their income later in life. 

Your child going off on their own for the first time can be a stressful time for both you and them. Luckily, you have plenty of years to prepare them as much as possible to be self-sufficient. Successfully preparing them to go off on their own will make this a much easier transition period for both them and you.