Tips for graduating seniors and their parents

One of the many victims of the COVID-19 pandemic has been (or will be) the loss of certain rites of passage for the high school class of 2020. In no specific order, most have missed the opportunity to compete in their senior year of spring. sports, your proms, your graduation ceremony, your seniors’ jumping and / or pranks day, your graduation night outings or parties, and in some cases when your students don’t have access to Wi -Fi or computers in their homes, at the end of their school year.

While I can’t imagine anyone wishing for these circumstances to happen to a child, the fact is that we have no control over the situation. I learned a long time ago that the best way to deal with things is to let go of the things that are beyond my control and put all my energy into the things that I do have control over. In the words of the legendary basketball coach and very wise human being, John Wooden: “Don’t let what you can’t do get in the way of what you can do.”

If parents talk to each other about how horrible things are, it doesn’t help anyone and actually hurts their children. When parents express how badly they feel that their child is going to “miss” the graduation ceremony or prom, it actually makes them more anxious than they probably already are and makes them feel worse, not better.

These things are not going to happen, so I think it is better to accept that fact as soon as possible and start looking for opportunities in the situation. No circumstance, however bad or tragic it may seem at the time, is without opportunities within it.

High school seniors, in general, are known to feel anxious about all the big changes that lie ahead, without the added stress of a pandemic and all the uncertainty that comes with it. What they need right now is for their parents to assure them that things will work out on time.

When they see that their parents are upset or scared, they become more scared. There is additional stress in many homes for parents, many of whom are suddenly unemployed, but as adults in the home, it is important to protect your children from those additional worries at this time. If they see that you are dreading your future, they are likely to be more anxious and fearful for theirs.

Most of the kids I’ve talked to are more upset about not being able to hang out with their friends than they are about missing their senior rites of passage. Some say that their parents are more discouraged by all that they are missing (not being able to post photos on social media of the events that are missed) than because their child is missing the events.

Many of life’s greatest triumphs come during difficult times. Companies like Apple, Microsoft and Airbnb were born in horrible economic recessions. Nelson Mandela unfairly spent 27 years in prison and could easily have spent those years feeling sorry for himself. Instead, he used that time to become one of the most revered leaders of all time and succeeded in eliminating apartheid in his country.

If you live in the present and take advantage of what each day has to offer, you may be surprised to find yourself better than before the pandemic struck.

Adversity is a reality for almost everyone. Some people let adversity destroy them, and others see it as a gift and experience growth. The only difference is which way you CHOOSE to look at it.

As Wayne Dyer says, “There is no point in worrying about things you have no control over because there is nothing you can do about it, and why worry about things you do control? The worrying activity keeps you immobilized.”

You can follow Sam on Twitter @SuperTaoInc

POSTED ON THE MIND SIDE BLOG

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