Many would like you to believe that child misbehavior is complex and inevitable. Being impatient with your child and not letting him or her contribute will as sure as anything drive them into rebellion. You will likely remember your child wanting to help but you were in too much of a hurry to allow it – they are small and learning – it is your job to let them. And let them own some things!
“If you think of somebody you hate, you can probably remember a time when you tried to help him or a man like him. Your hatred, actually, is based on the fact that you flopped. You failed you and you failed him.
“When you were a little kid so high, you wanted to help Mama and Daddy. Fine, you wanted to help them, you wanted to get a big job, you wanted…After a while you started getting unreal and exaggerated, you no longer brought Mommy the dishcloth, and so forth, you started to get exaggerated, you said ‘How can I make 800 billion pounds and buy them limousines?’ You see, you were getting desperate by that time. But possibly any of you could remember such a response towards your parents.
“And then after a while you decided you couldn’t do a thing about it. And that is the basis of teenage negation of family. The child has decided he can do nothing about it.
“Now if that child also decides that he cannot help society or any section of it, you have a delinquent on your hands—if the child decides that. He has to know that he can help. And as long as he knows that he can help, he’ll stay in communication and stay right. But when he feels he can no longer help, he starts blowing up. There goes his life.”
L. RON HUBBARD
Where’s this quote from? It’s great! Would love to use it with some more examples on my ScientologyParent site.
From a Lecture: lecture
“Some Aspects of Help”
30 June 1960
Nice – thanks!