Our kids are stuck in a comfort-zone. They need a Saturday job
Iwas sad to hear in the news that fewer young people are taking Saturday jobs these days.
Life is too comfortable for youngsters. If they don’t want to do something, they don’t
There has been a big drop in the number of child work permits issued to businesses who want to employ under-16s over the past years.
One of the reasons is the pressure from schools to cram in extra exam revision, and I think that’s such a shame.
It’s not necessarily academic success that prepares you best for the world of work.
I had a paper round when I was a teenager as well as a job in a grocery shop and the life experience was invaluable.
There were mornings I’d look out at the awful weather at 5am and not want to get up, but I had to because somebody was waiting for their paper and the shopkeeper was relying on me.
I don’t think many youngsters nowadays think too much like that. Life is too comfortable for them and if they don’t want to do something, they simply don’t do it.
When I had my grocery jobs I learned all sorts of things. There was more to it than just using the machines to cut the cheese or the ham, it was also about serving the public, working as part of a team and dealing with situations as they came up.
Even if the job itself isn’t entirely suitable, there are definite life lessons to be learned.
Dealing with customers taught me how difficult some people can be – and when it’s best to bite your tongue.
Now, when we communicate by email and text, the art of face-to-face contact is being lost as well.
Education can give you all the learning and information you need to get a degree, but it doesn’t give you the practical experience of being in a workplace and getting on with others.
You see that on TV shows such as The Apprentice. The candidates can be bright people, academically, but they don’t have the life skills to do a task.
We just have to find a way to encourage kids to take more of those part-time jobs. It stands you in such good stead when you go for a proper job.
I saw another report claiming that three-quarters of 16 to 24-year-olds didn’t like the term “snowflake generation” and felt it could damage their mental health.
We have a generation who have let technology take over their lives and everything they need to know is on Google.
Stuck with your homework? Just talk into your phone and someone gives you the answer.
There’s a lack of focus on developing resilience or perseverance or the art setting and of achieving goals.
You can’t label all kids “snowflakes” but I think now, more than ever before, young people are in danger of spending life in a comfort zone and never actually learning to solve their own problems.