As we have learned in the previous article: “Teenagers are quick to want to leave the house faster than they are ready to become an adult, as a parent it is very essential to ensure they are prepared for that journey.”

So keep in mind that before your teen leaves home, ensure they’re ready to live independently by directly or indirectly teaching them skills you know they are bound to need in the future. Teenagers most often than not are not aware of what lies ahead, but being armed with both practical and various social skills gives us the confidence that they can handle certain situations on their own.

Some Social and Psychological Life Skills:

Clarify core values: Everyone’s set of core values is unique and influenced by their life experiences, the values your teen chooses will guide their behavior. Point them in a promising direction by ensuring they can articulate their beliefs and put them into action. This helps with finding their purpose, guiding their behavior, helping them make decisions, helping them choose a career and increasing their confidence.

Act mindfully: Conscious awareness of one’s experience in the present moment enables you to perceive accurately what is happening , gives you important information about whether to change or persist in behavior, and allows you to engage fully in what you are doing.
That said, mobile devices are shortening the average attention span. If you want your teen to understand the power of mindfulness, you’ll need to teach by example. Give them your full attention when they’re talking, and turn the TV off if possible.

Manage stress: According to Wikipedia “Stress management is a wide spectrum of techniques and psychotherapies aimed at controlling a person’s level of stress, especially chronic stress, usually for the purpose of and for the motive of improving everyday functioning”. Developing mindfulness will help protect your teen from depression and anxiety.

Cultivate relationships: Making connections through friends and networking .

Be assertive: Help your child to develop healthy self-esteem and stand up for themselves.

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