Twenty years ago, what did you imagine the future would look like? At that time, smartphones didn’t exist. Facebook had only been around a year or so. And you probably didn’t know anyone who drove an electric car (Tesla was two years old). You couldn’t have imagined that 20 years later we’d literally be talking about AI and robots and that the most powerful computers available at that time would be outperformed by something we now carry around in our pockets. And change is happening even faster now due to drastically improved technology and increased connectivity. The pace of change is almost dizzying.
This can leave us, as parents, feeling incredibly inept at preparing our teens for the future. How do we equip them for a future we can’t predict? Here are 5 ways to prepare your teen for an unpredictable future.
1. Encourage curiosity.
Encouraging curiosity will be critical to preparing our teens for an unpredictable future in which they will need to be lifelong learners. When my kids were young, we spent lots of time in the library and reading with them at home. When they discovered TikTok and, more recently, AI, we tried to acknowledge that we weren’t experts, but did our best to ask good questions about the benefits and the potential risks. My hope is not to necessarily get my kids to agree with me on everything, but to get them to think critically and ask good questions so they can make well-informed decisions. Dr. Madeline Levine of the Child Mind Institute says, “Lifelong learning will be the key to job security … [It] involves capabilities such as flexibility, curiosity, tolerance for failure, and collaboration.” How do you prepare teens for the future? Cultivate curiosity.
2. Prioritize people.
You know what’s probably going to be pretty similar in 20 years? Working with people will be both difficult and critically important. In the future, people will still want to be treated with dignity, listened to, encouraged, and led well. They’ll still have conflict and need people who know how to resolve it. Again and again, when reading about preparing kids for the future, experts cite the importance of things like emotional intelligence and collaboration. Take the opportunity to teach your kids when they are young to put people first: Put phones away at meal times, set limits on social media, get outside with your friends, serve together, and join social groups. Model that in your own life. How do you prepare teens for the future? Build in them a value for people.
3. Facilitate growing in wisdom.
One of the things that seems obvious about AI, as well as all technology, is that it is amoral. It can be used for tremendous good or evil. The difference maker is the wisdom and character of those using it. Investing in your teen’s wisdom is an investment in his future and, frankly, in the future of humanity. Encourage your children to read, have conversations with them about ethical and spiritual issues, and make sure they are surrounded by other wise adults. Do all that you can to plant wisdom in your children. It will bear tremendous fruit. How do you prepare teens for the future? Help them grow in wisdom.
4. Give them purpose.
What’s the meaning of life? Is there one? These are big questions, and your teens will have them. Maybe they won’t ask you outright, but they’ll wonder. And they’ll talk with their peers. Look for ways to help your teen see that his or her life is full of meaning and purpose. Faith traditions do this well. But you can also create a sense of purpose as a family by teaching your kids that they have a role in making the world a better place. Research consistently shows that having a sense of purpose builds resilience over time, and resilience is critical to thriving in an unpredictable future. How do you prepare teens for the future? Give them a sense of purpose for their lives.
5. Pass on a value for work.
Advances in technology always value efficiency and reduction of labor over personal satisfaction in a job well done. Why craft an email when you can have AI write it? Why create art when AI can pull something together? As we move into a future where we can increasingly accomplish more by doing less, it can be easy to simply take the easy route. However, there is something deeply satisfying in knowing that your gifts and talents can actually be used to impact the life of another. Encourage your teen to discover their gifts and use them. Teach them that they are creators, and they get to take part in making the world something good for themselves and others. How do you prepare teens for the future? Help them gain a value for good work.
Sound off: What else can you give your teen to prepare him for a future you can’t predict?
Huddle up with your kids and ask, “How can I help you prepare for something you have coming up?”