The Path
In this blog post, I introduce the madness and long-term impact of the ‘path’ teenagers are relentlessly implored to follow if they hope to earn their master key as young adults.
In this post, I will drill down on the ‘path’ and why I so aggressively dismantle it in my new book, Pathbreaker Parenting.
Each step gets its own chapter because it’s essential to understand what’s being done to your teenager.
To summarize six chapters and forty pages in one blog post…college is the hub.
Virtually everything about the path centers on 1) Getting picked by the best possible college and 2) Reaping the benefits of graduating from said college.
If college isn’t possible or you are unwilling to do what it takes to be worthy, then you must accept your lot in life. There are many doors you do not get to open.
But, if college is possible and you decide to be worthy, your future success and happiness will be determined by your investment in the mass-industrialized education system.
As soon as your teen (and you) goes all-in on an obsolete system, they’re at risk.
“Instead of mentoring and guiding your teen to flourish across all life domains, embracing confident self-direction and priming them for a thriving future, you are pushing all your chips to the center of the table based on a playbook that became obsolete at least two decades ago.”
Note I didn’t say they’re doomed.
Based on state laws, some jobs and careers require a credential from the education system. For those needles in the haystack, the path is necessary.
Some path followers are happy and fulfilled, regardless of their career path. And some path followers feel the “experience” was life-changing in the best of ways.
The path isn’t wrong for everyone.
The problem is that the path is presented as right for anyone who wants to make the most of themselves. And teenagers are indoctrinated early.
“We just want you to be happy and believe your happiness will depend on financial stability and success. Plus, if you qualify for it, the college experience is unlike any other.”
As a parent of two daughters (now 24 and 26), I never believed in it.