Putting Kids In Charge

Do we make things too difficult on ourselves?  While not everything can be black and white, do we work too much in the gray?  In life, we make a lot of difficult decisions, but are they really that difficult or do we just perceive them to be?

This past week, my daughter shadowed me at work.  It was a busy day with multiple meetings ranging from finance to marketing to manufacturing.  She was able to see what I go through in a day and meet most of the great people I work with.

I know she learned a bit.  She participated and gave her input when asked, she provided me with some good insight.  Most of all, she put some things in plain terms that I would over-complicate.

There's the real boss...

There’s the real boss…

Kids see things for what they are and can point them out with ease.  They’re not worried about hurting feelings and because they are kids, we’re not threatened.  It’s a lot easier to hear a child tell you that you don’t fit in your clothes than to hear it from your spouse.  On a difficult personnel decision, it’s pretty easy for a child to know what’s right and wrong and point it out to you.

Kids aren’t burdened with all of the nonsense.  Their world’s are pretty black and white.  People are dealing with a lot of perceived chaos right now, but kids just keep going on with their day.  Maybe if we were all a little more naive and unaware, the world would be a better place.  If we didn’t take ourselves so seriously, we could get a little more accomplished.

Next time you’re faced with what feels like a difficult decisions, get your child’s input.  Fill them in on the situation and give them the important details.  Then see what they say.  I bet they’ll have a clear and correct decision.  I bet they’ll solve your problem for you.  Now all you have to do is trust them.