Post 2 - A Recent Argument

I recently had an argument, or rather a "discussion," with my teenager about his career goals.  We were talking about what he would like to have as his major in college and he informed me that he would like to be an actor.  Oh boy!!  This is not exactly what I had dreamed of for his future.  I don't think that any parent would like to hear that their child's ambitions were headed in that direction.  I immediately had an angry reaction that stemmed from my doubts and worries for him.  That was definitely a poor choice on my part.  He dug his heels in and became even more rooted in his belief that acting would be the career for him.  I then came to my senses and thought of something my mother always told me, "As soon as you begin to argue with a child, you've already lost."

I let both of us simmer down for several weeks before I addressed the topic again.  I spoke to him about my worries regarding his ability to support himself while waiting to get a "break."  I also offered him some alternatives to this problem, like choosing drama as a major and something else as a minor.  He would have a way to support himself and still be able to seek an acting career in his off time.  We have a great relationship, so having a discussion rather than an angry reaction by me worked out well for us.  After considering all of this, he decided a couple of weeks later that maybe he didn't want to be an actor (thank God!!).  I learned that I shouldn't overreact and thought back to how many times I changed my mind as a teen about what I wanted to be when I grew up.  This was a consideration that I should have made when he initially announced his chosen career!  Parental lesson learned.