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Talk to your Teen about Making NY’s Resolutions
by Suzanne King, Director of Operations, The Launch Pad Teen Center
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new year is here and with it comes resolutions. Too often they are motivated by guilt, fear or pressure. Longlasting change is more likely when it comes from a place of hope and excitement. Teens have a unique set of needs that might require different goals than adults. If your teen shares that they are setting a resolution, talk to them about how to make it achievable. Keep it simple. Remind teens that keeping resolutions should make them feel good about
themselves. They should not be too hard to keep, be used to criticize themselves or create additional stress. Here is an examples of how to turn a New Year’s resolution with a possible self-shaming outcome into a fun and positive experience. Losing weight and less screen time seem to always be high on a resolutions’ list. The goal of “I’ll join a gym and work out regularly” isn’t ideal for everyone. The goal of “I’ll put my phone away for an hour every day/night” is much
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harder to do when there is nothing to replace it with. Some great ways to achieve these resolutions could be getting involved in cooking family meals to gain awareness of what they are eating and how it affects their body. Joining a weekend hike with The Launch Pad Teen Center to get the body moving while enjoying fresh air, seeing beautiful scenery and spending time with peers. Roller skating has recently regained popularity. Prescott’s own PTown Social Skate Club holds themed
skating events once or twice a month and provides lessons. All of these activities can cover both resolutions in a fun nontraditional way. When you’re helping your teen set and achieve their resolutions, remember the following: Be realistic, make goals measurable so success can be easily tracked, break down the goal into small achievable tasks and establish milestones, support them, and most importantly, remind them that they have an entire year to accomplish their resolution.
