Craig T. Owens

In a recently-released last chapter to his ground-breaking book Generation iY, Tim Elmore added material that made me realize more than ever that this book is a must read for anyone who works with youth. You can read my book review by clicking here, and you can read some other quotes I shared from this chapter by clicking here.

Just a few additional thoughts Dr. Elmore shared in this chapter that I wanted to pass along to you—

“We did a better job preventing, presuming and protecting then we did preparing.” 

“Examine the right-hand column for a moment. Notice the words slow, hard, boring, risk and labor. Are those not the very ingredients that build a mature adult? When a task is hard and it moves slowly, it builds patience and work ethic in me. When things are boring, it forces my mind to be creative on its own. When I have to take risks, I learn that failure is not final or fatal, and that it’s only when I risk failure that I feel the satisfaction of true success. And when I learn to embrace labor, using my strengths to add value to others, I learned the value of service.”

“Wherever you see a lacking virtue, there’s likely an activity you can do to build it, just as one would lift weights to improve physical muscle strength. … We can no longer assume those emotional muscles will develop naturally in kids. We must initiate a plan to build them. Will likely need to discuss this issue over with them, and agree to balance the virtual with the genuine; the screen with the real. In short: 

• More time interacting with the real people. 
• More time outside in active movement. 
• More time working and waiting on answers. 
• More time initiating and less time reacting.” 

“It’s important to strike a balance between utilizing the conveniences of modern technology and building the life skills that require no technology.”