IssueRaiser

I appreciate the sentiment of the article, but I hate that our culture plays up this idea that being a good parent means being there for ...

I appreciate the sentiment of the article, but I hate that our culture plays up this idea that being a good parent means being there for all the arbitrary "milestones." I honestly don't remember if my dad was there or not on my first day of school, etc. I sure as hell remember that he called me when I got home from school every day to make sure I was okay and not getting into trouble. You're not going to be able to convince corporate America that a kid's dance recital is more important than a client meeting. All you'll do by stressing that dance recital is make busy parents feel bad for not being able to live up to some ideal, or discourage ambitious people from having kids because they think they can't be good parents too. You'll get a lot further trying to push back on ideas like "face time" or competing on who can take the least vacation. Don't have much work? Go home at 2 and take your kid to a museum. That's just as valuable as your being there for an arbitrary "milestone."

Posted by rayiner on Sep 26, 2014, 7:40 PM

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complaint (EdTech)

I appreciate the sentiment of the article, but I hate that our culture plays up this idea that being a good parent means being there for ...

rayinerSep 26, 2014, 7:40 PM

I appreciate the sentiment of the article, but I hate that our culture plays up this idea that being a good parent means being there for all the arbitrary "milestones." I honestly don't remember if my dad was there or not on my first day of school, etc. I sure as hell remember that he called me when I got home from school every day to make sure I was okay and not getting into trouble. You're not going to be able to convince corporate America that a kid's dance recital is more important than a client meeting. All you'll do by stressing that dance recital is make busy parents feel bad for not being able to live up to some ideal, or discourage ambitious people from having kids because they think they can't be good parents too. You'll get a lot further trying to push back on ideas like "face time" or competing on who can take the least vacation. Don't have much work? Go home at 2 and take your kid to a museum. That's just as valuable as your being there for an arbitrary "milestone."

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