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Parenting, and particularly parenting teens, is no easy matter so here we have 3 tips to help out:

1. Keep up with modern teenage behavior. It is natural for you to look at your teenager’s development and to compare it to your own childhood days. But kids today are very different and the changes over even a single generation can be frightening. Take a little time to educate yourself about teenage life today not just by talking to your teenage children, but also by looking at teenage magazines, television and of course the internet. A few things will be seen as positive changes and others as negative but, whatever the changes, it is crucial to understand that this is the world which your kids and their friends inhabit.

2. Discuss instead of lecture. If your teenager is going to grow into a responsible adult who is capable of making good decisions then you must teach him just how to go about the process of decision making. All too frequently it is easier to simply tell a teenager what to do (and what not to do) instead of taking a bit of time to sit down and discuss the options, drawing attention to the pros and cons and teaching them how to select the right path. This will not only not help your teenager to gain the skills he needs, but it also frequently result in needless confrontation.

3. Do not give up too quickly. Children are very good when it comes to getting what they want and can be extremely inventive when it comes to figuring out just how to persuade you to say ‘yes’. In addition, they will rarely take ‘no’ as an answer and will keep going until they get their way. Let your kids play this game as it is part of the learning process but hold your ground and be consistent. At the end of the day when the answer has to be ‘no’ then don’t give in.