Another point I’d like to share is from Dr John Demartini. He says that you need to communicate with peoples “Values”. If you can get a kid to relate learning to their value system they will all excel. If a boy is interested in riding bikes, then relate his learning to bikes. How will be be able to ride his bikes more “because” of having good grades?

Why is it a kid “diagnosed” with ADD can focus intensely on a video game for 5 hours and know everything there is to know about it? That is hardly attention disorder! The kid simply has attention for what is in his “Values”.

If you can tell the kid that and make him believe it - he will achieve it!

One of my friends was telling a child off because they were not getting good grades.

I proceeded to ask if anyone in the room had good grades. One friend put his hand up and said I did - with which I replied, and what do you have to show for it - he said nothing!

The other frind then got angry with me, and said why do you think we are telling our kids to get good grades. At least they have a better chance; and what’s more we want them to have what we don’t.

And herein lies the problem. You can tell a child until you are blue in the face that they are better off in life if they get good grades etc, but if they can look at you and see something toally different, it wont change things.

Whether you were a flop at school and didn’t get too far, or you were good at school but struggle financially it doesn’t matter. If the child sees any form of struggle this is what they will associate with - not your words!!!

And it is this that I could not get my friends to see.

Children are bored, they listen to rap music, they get into trouble, they commit crimes, they show a lack of respect and on and on it goes - but is it any wonder. It doesn’t seem to matter if the parents had a good education or not, everyone is struggling in the eyes of our children.

This old disciplinary form of telling the kid to sit down and shut up and learn is useless. It does nothing but create a wide gap.

We need to inpire our children by focussing our efforts on being passionate in life. Live in peace with yourself, serve the world, and enjoy doing it, and the rest (financial well-being, great relationships etc) will follow.

Dean