Responsibility and Accountability for Parents and Children

A recent article in the Wall Street Journal entitled "Why Chinese Mothers are Superior" has generated a great deal of discussion on parenting philosophies.  These are always very personal to people, and are passionate topics since they deliver a message regarding our own approaches to life--what is a greater reflection of us, in our minds and in the minds of others, than our children whether it is true or not.

I found this article (and the reader comments on the article) fascinating since I found myself saying  sometimes "I wouldn't parent that way," but also thinking to myself temptingly "If I do more of what she did would I get the same results with my children?"

In all honesty, there are many ways in which I find what I do consistent with what she talked about (without some of the more dramatic moments).   The points that I like to take away from this article are:

1)  Excellence at anything requires hard work and dedication--whether I read it in this article, or in Malcolm Gladwell's "Outliers", or in the biography of someone who reached the top of their chosen field, without fail the best are the ones who spent more time, energy and effort than anyone else.   I help coach both of my son's soccer teams, and I often see parents who wonder why their children do not perform at the same level as other children, and I can always trace it back to the amount of time they spend playing, formally or informally.
2)  Responsibility and Accountability--I found the approach of the author of the article to be a little conflicted on this.  On the one hand, I appreciated the fact that she was honest with her children regarding their performance in different areas.  I was told by a friend once that John Wooden, the famous UCLA basketball coach, always coached from the middle, never praising too much and never criticizing too much, but pointing out what was done correctly and incorrectly and what needed to be improved.

And I have experienced first hand the challenging moments with two children who play piano and violin--there have been some days where I certainly did not know if they would continue.   But I believe that even at early ages children can take responsibility for their learning, even if they need a push periodically.   The life lessons of growing in music are sports are great--each week you face a new musical piece, a new skill to master in soccer practice, etc., and it is always difficult to begin with.   But with time and effort, you overcome it just as daughter did in the article.  Having them learn their role in achieving excellence, and that it does not come easy.   The question this article raised for me is whether my wife and I as parents, and my children, are willing to make the effort to achieve the excellence that they say they desire.  Even though they are young, I am a believe that they are capable of having these discussions earlier than most of us believe.

The Need for Work Life Balance in Today’s Economy

Recently the subject of work life balance has found a new awakening. The concept of balancing our personal and business needs isn’t a new phenomenon however it’s become an increasingly growing trend with the development of information technology. Business week recently released a report on the demand for and necessity of work life balance during a recession.

http://www.businessweek.com/managing/special_reports/20090326work-life_balance.htm. Recent studies have shown that even with the technological breakthroughs that have helped make daily tasks simpler, we can still find ourselves stressed and time crunched. These studies also show that in a stressful environment, productivity and employee wellness progressively decline, killing an organization’s profitability. These recent finding have spawned the new age of work life balance. Where employees work in their most productive time scales and shift their focus to the appropriate task at hand.

Some of the steps that Fortune 500 Companies are implementing include:

1. Telecommuting - When employees work from home, they not only create more work time by saving the daily commute, but they also save the overhead cost of a rented or owned business facility. One of the biggest innovators in this is Capital One who is promoting a work from home option to all levels of management.
2. Flexible Schedules - The Corporate Executive Board conducted a research survey asking employees what the most important aspect of their employer was. They found that “In the current economic environment, work-life balance now ranks as one of the most important workplace attributes—second only to compensation.” Their article describes this balance as “The gift of time.” Many large companies offer their employees free time for education, physical fitness, or personal errands. Or they may offer company gym memberships or discount meals as a way for employees to make the best use of their daily time.
3. Education – Many of us just don’t know where to start when it comes to balancing our lives. What is the most important activity we do every day? What activities will help me be more productive? These questions are all addressed in each of our Work Life Balance Workshops. We recently added a resource to our website called Creating Sanity. This is a free self evaluation that we offer workshop participants to help them balance their priorities.

This month Innovations International celebrates its one-year anniversary in becoming a virtual organization. Our employees all balance their home and work life while assisting our clients with successful initiatives in leadership, diversity, creativity and work life balance. The learning we experienced has given us the in depth knowledge that we bring to each of our clients as we assist them in making a similar transition.

Kathleen DiFrancesco
Director of Marketing
Innovations International