Teens are Tough to Parent
4 teen-recommended books to help your kid out.
4 teen-recommended books to help your kid out.
Note: I’m limited by my experience as an American teenager in a relatively privileged part of the world. What works for the people I know won’t necessarily work for anybody else.
As an annoying, irritable, bratty teenager, I know we’re difficult.
At the same time that we’re in the phase of their life where they need the most guidance (high school), we decide to start slamming doors and stop listening.
When endless lectures stop working, it should be a signal to start switching things up.
I’ve noticed that gaining lessons organically is far more likely to cause positive change and set us on the right path.
Good books are the perfect places to pick up those organic lessons.
The next four books target what I believe are the four most important areas of life for teenagers with case studies, compelling arguments, and actionable advice.
The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck by Mark Manson
High school is a battleground of status, drama, and confusion.
Add high workloads and the stress of college applications looming in the distance, and they can be the worst four years of your life.
Enter The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck.
The book touches on choosing better values for oneself, finding happiness through purpose, the reality of truth, and how death plays into each of those things.
Underneath the colorful vocabulary and humor is a masterclass on leading a fulfilling life that can serve as a manual for navigating life in high school and beyond.
“It’s growth that generates happiness, not a long list of arbitrary achievements.”
“Pleasure is not the cause of happiness; rather, it is the effect.”
“Our problems birth our happiness, along with slightly better, slightly upgraded problems.”
“And if you think at any point you’re allowed to stop climbing, I’m afraid you’re missing the point. Because the joy is in the climb itself.”
“Action isn’t just the effect of motivation; it’s also the cause of it.”
Deep Work by Cal Newport
The ability to do deep work is a critical factor in success in every stage of life.
Within high school specifically, being able to unlock deep concentration is critical for homework, studying, and extracurricular success.
Deep Work provides actionable frameworks that help you find your deep work strategy and discover ways to cultivate high levels of focus.
Atomic Habits by James Clear
As a teenager, from here on out, building good habits is the key to success in every stage of life.
Habits are at the core of every part of life.
Academic success, fitness, extracurricular success, and basically everything else in life are all based on many little habits that either push you in the right direction or nudge you off the path.
Atomic Habits is perhaps the defining book on the art of building good habits and breaking bad ones.
Since habits will define every aspect at every stage of life, it’s important to learn the theory behind how habits work and how to use that theory to have the habits you want.
Make it Stick by Henry L. Roediger III, Mark A. McDaniel, and Peter C. Brown
Make it Stick is a fantastic book for learning how to learn.
Too many high schoolers (and people in general) don’t know how to learn properly, which can lead them to waste hundreds of hours in ineffective studying.
The science-backed techniques I’ve learned from this book (and another great book called How to Become a Straight-A Student) save me several hours a week.
This book isn’t just important at the school level. Knowing how to pick up new things and remember key information quickly is an important skill that affects all aspects of life. It’s getting even more important these days to be able to learn things quickly because of the speed at which technology is changing our lives.
That’s all from me. If you enjoyed this post I’d love to hear it through some claps or a comment.