Greetings All, I hope this day finds you well. My name is Shanelle R. Benson Reid and I am an educator. My super power is all things education. I am a speaker, author, consultant, coach, advocate and motivator of all things education. I talk about education to anyone who is willing to listen. Yes, I am that passionate about educating, encouraging and empowering the masses.
Recently, I had the pleasure of speaking to a group of parents and I want to share my response to a question that was posed during our discussion.
Question: My name is Erin and I have a son who is 15 years old. My son is a special education student and is doing well in school, right now. He works hard but sometimes falls short. This does not discourage him because he seems to maintain a positive outlook. My son has a seasonal lawn care business and makes really good money every year. He loves the work but I think he should consider getting a “real job” now that he is getting older. What are your suggestions?
Before I responded, I had a couple questions for Erin.
Me: Do you work outside of the home?
Erin: Yes, I have a part-time job.
Me: Are you married and does your husband work?
Erin: Yes, I am married and my husband is a motivational speaker.
My Response
Yes, I am an educator, but I also know education stifles creativity. We send our most valuable resources to a setting that encourages them to be like everyone else. We promote assimilation and conformity without considering the detriment. How about deciding to do things differently! Let’s encourage our children to play, laugh and live. Let’s ask them about their dreams and visions. What if we decided to promote kindness, vulnerability and authenticity? Let’s allow them to feel, I mean really feel; they will thank us later. Here’s the deal; if your son has decided he enjoys something allow him to continue. What if he is able to turn his seasonal lawn care business into a lawn care, entrepreneurship opportunity? His ideas are seeds in bloom so fertilize them and allow his interests to flower instead of suffocating his beliefs because popular opinion says passion is not real work.
Dr. Shanelle R. Benson Reid, President and CEO of ACCESS Global, LLC. is a Consultant, Coach, Author and Professional Speaker. Her expertise is in Education, Cultural Competency, Social Awareness, Entrepreneurship and Community / Individual Empowerment.
Feel free to connect. I enjoy feedback and comments.
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Originally published at medium.com