Danny Granger is a Jehovah’s Witness, family man, and entrepreneur. In the following article, Danny Granger discusses how parenting a teenaged girl is like nothing else in this world.
Parents are often warned about the teenage years, but no parent truly understands the unique experience of raising a teenager until they go through it. And while no two children are ever alike, there are still differences between raising a boy, and raising a girl.
Moms might feel the need to be their daughter’s best friend, and dads can instinctively want to wrap their little girl up in cotton wool, to protect her from the kinds of young men that they know about from their own youth. What unites all parents of teenage girls, however, Danny Granger says is the wish that they had a little more preparation before these years came along.
Be a Good Role Model
This is perhaps the fundamental aspect of raising a teenager. Gone are the days where the “do as a I say” rule will be followed. Teenagers are young adults, and they now recognize when adults are being disingenuous, or hypocritical.
Apologizing, owning up to mistakes, and working hard to correct matters are all ways in which parents can instill positive values in their daughters as they grow into young, responsible women.
Be Discrete
Danny Granger, Jehovah’s Witness says that discretion when dealing with a daughter is an incredibly powerful value. Teenage girls are often burdened by social ideals that come at them from every angle, and on top of schoolwork and family matters, they will need someone to confide in.
Parents must listen to their daughters but afterward, be discrete with that information. They shouldn’t share it with other parents, or the teenager’s grandparents, or use it as gossip among their own friends. When that happens, the teenager will know they can’t trust their parents with personal, and often troubling, concerns explains Danny Granger.
And what parents do learn should never be thrown back at their child in times of arguments or moments of irritation. That secret from three months ago should remain a secret, because getting the trust back is not only difficult, but sometimes impossible.
Protect them from Social Media Strife
Danny Granger says that gone are the days when parents could stop their kids from watching television, or take away their phones, or switch off the internet. Social media isn’t only impossible to avoid, but it has a real influence on a teenager’s self-image, particularly young women.
Danny Granger reports that with studies revealing that over
a fifth of teenage girls report feeling low when they don’t get comments or likes on their posts, it’s more important than ever to check in with young women and how they’re feeling.
From keeping them protected from unsavory strangers and boosting their self-confidence, Danny Granger explains that teenage girls should always have their supportive parents there to listen to their worries and show them how their value is so much more than social media clout.
Encourage Real-Life Friendships
Teenage girls are masters of girly drama. From cat fights to gossip, falling out over the same guy to the humiliation of coming to school in the same outfit, there’s no end to young women’s friendship woes.
But this is all perfectly normal, and their parents went through exactly the same thing. What moms and dads should keep in mind is that their teenage daughter’s
real-life friends are vital to their wellbeing.
Danny Granger reports that social media can be a vapid and even dangerous place. Parents should meet, get to know, and show genuine interest in their daughter’s friendship groups. This includes respecting their daughter’s friends, refraining from being judgmental, and being a responsible adult who supports the whole group.
These are Crucial Years
A teenage girl’s adolescent years are not like the ‘terrible twos’ - parents should not just grit their teeth, get through it as best they can, and simply keep their child away from breakable objects.
Use the resources that are out there. If thinking about fostering a teenage girl, start by asking
what is foster care and check out the wealth of information available.
Instead, Danny Granger says that a young woman’s teenage years are the most crucial time of her development, and often when she will learn the most. They can make or break the relationship that she continues to have with her parents for the rest of her life.
Patience, respect, time to listen, and most of all reassurances of love and support are the skills that all parents should do their best to cultivate with a teenage girl. Showing these values in their own lives will give their teenage daughter the very best example on how to grow into a well-rounded, respectful adult.
