ARE YOU VERSATILE?

Time and time again I am apt to get a little frustrated with people whose ideas and actions are set in concrete and wonder whether they will ever get the message that we live in a changing world. I presume that the root cause is a desire for safety and security. The fear of the unknown, the dark at the top of the stairs, is enough to make many a heart quail at their inadequacy to face up to new situations.
I think parents are to blame often for not giving their children a chance to make their own mistakes. They like to swathe them in cotton wool in case anything drastic happens to their children. And, of course, parents' tolerance level is usually pretty low especially at the end of the day or weekends when childen demand attention. How often have you said, "Not now Johnny, I'm just too busy."
And he goes off to play with his toys instead of learning to fix the puncture in his bike under your supervision.
Your children learn more from watching how you operate than any other way and they become mirror images of you. Maybe you should look at yourself and ask the question, "Do I like what I see? Am I a versatile person with a good capacity? If anyone shows me a better way of doing something am I willing to change? What are some of the inhibitions I have gleaned from my hereditary or environmental upbringing? Are my attitudes so set that I am unwilling to change?"
Over the years I've discovered that versatility is one of the most desirable of traits to add to my repertoire. And I have had the benefit of bringing up two sets of children, experimenting on the first lot and hopefully doing better with the second lot. The first batch I did everything for them expecting them to watch what I was doing and hoping it would rub of them somehow.
They watched me do all sorts of things but in hindsight I didn't give them much of a chance to make their own mistakes.
The second two had to do things under my supervision and now I must agree that they have proved the most versatile.
In the area of finances childen should be given an allowance and, initially under supervision, spend it and save it wisely.
Different methods of investment should be discussed and the resulting effects nutted out. A mini-budget for the ensuing twelve months should be worked on together and parents should firmly ensure that at least for the first year the plan should be adhered to without too much flexibility. After the child has had the discipline of spending under supervision, increasing lattitude should be allowed until such time as he or she can fly solo. In this way you will be setting a firm foundation that will give direction to your child right through adulthood.