How to Help Your Teen
Become a Hero
A great life doesn't happen on accident or because you're 'lucky'
A great life happens when you become the hero of your own life story.
Are YOU one of us?
Do you believe your child has a deep potential waiting to be discovered, ignited and fed?
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Do you believe they have a calling which will change the world around them?
If so, then welcome to the torture chamber...
...I mean tribe!
I joke that it's a torture chamber...
...but it would often be easier if we believed our children were average.
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I mean, then we wouldn't have to work so hard to inspire them to discover their genius.
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We could just let them play video games all day and send them to public school.
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That would be sooo much easier...
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Instead we have an incredibly difficult job...
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...to believe our child is a genius (even when they don't act like it sometimes).
To spark the flame. To set them out as a hero on a heroes journey.
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To help them discover:
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who they want to be and where they are going
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what their dreams are
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what gives them energy and excites them (besides Minecraft or texting their friends)
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their unique strengths
Not only that, but we also need to guide them to:
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develop the skills needed to reach their dreams
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practice those skills on a regular basis
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master the skills that will matter for their life mission
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learn to think, innovate, and create
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identify and manage their stewardships
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PLUS, we need to help them:
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identify what knowledge and information they need to learn to DO and BECOME everything listed above
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Whew. That's a lot.
It's tough. It's not a job for wimps.
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But you're not a wimp. Or you wouldn't still be reading this.
But HOW exactly do we do it?
It's not easy. But it is WORTH it.
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And it's summarized with one word:
TRAINING
If you want to get into great physical shape, you have to train your body.
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If you want to win at a sport, you have to train as a team.
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And as Archilochus put it:
We don't rise to the level of our expectations. We fall to the level of our training.
- Archilochus
Greg and I have developed a list of the MOST IMPORTANT skills (aka habits) children (and adults) need to be trained in to achieve a happy and successful life.
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This list is based on 20 years of research:
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Know who they are, what they love to do, and what their dreams are.
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Understand what skills they need to gain to discover and achieve #1.
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Become ware of the
knowledge and information needed to accomplish 1 & 2
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Practice on a regular basis the skills needed to achieve #2
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Develop the ability to generate and maintain positive emotions.
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Learn to adapt and recover from setbacks (including negative emotions).
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Build and nurture relationships in their family and community.
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Embrace failure and recognize it as a tool for success.
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Be vulnerable and open to correction and feedback.
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Learn how to 'think outside the box' to create new ways of doing things.
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Analyze and manage potential risks and rewards to make decisions.
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Prioritize daily tasks and duties to accomplish short and long-term goals.
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Manage and complete projects (their own and others).
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Learn to deal with challenges and face fears.
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Find and use mentors and advisers to help you fulfill your mission.
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Learn to be a leader and guide others to become their best selves.
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Effectively communicate (with diplomacy) to inspire and influence others.
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Embrace discomfort and do hard things.
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Delay gratification and avoid procrastination.
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Maintain and generate physical and mental energy needed to live life at it's fullest.
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Eliminate negative addictions and replace them with positive ones.
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Replace willpower with habit and make success automatic instead of a struggle.
From our own personal experience, and from working with thousands of parents and teens on five continents...
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...each of these skills can be learned.
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And when they become a HABIT... that's where the magic is!
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That's when creating a successful life not only becomes possible... it becomes easy to do! Automatic.
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(Read The Power of Habit to learn more of why I'm talking about it being 'automatic'.)
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When this list become a part of who you are and how you do life, that's how success and happiness are achieved.
It's also how anxiety, depression, failure-to-launch, and suicide are avoided.
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But if any thing in this list is off... watch out.
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It may not seem like a big deal now.
But down the road, even being ONE degree off course leads to disaster.
Do you see how different this 'curriculum' is compared to other schooling approaches?
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Reading, writing, and arithmatic are important. We need them to succeed in life.
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But if we have those and we DON'T have the list above... well, we're in trouble. And so are our teens.
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That's why THIS STUFF should be the primary focus of our educational plan.
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If our kids have these -- well, they'll teach themselves EVERYTHING else they need to know to achieve their life mission.
Whether that's reading or calculus, they'll take care of it ONCE they've mastered the habits of living well.
Find a Mentor And a Community
So where do we go from here?
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If we really need to throw out the fishbowl and jump into the ocean of reality, how do we do it?
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It starts by finding mentors and community.
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We can't go it alone. We can't do it ourselves.
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Besides that, our teens won't always (ever?) listen to us.
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They need outside mentors. And you need help. Someone on your team.
Successful people build the community they need.
My husband and I have seven children.
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Teaching them this list is not optional. It's not a 'would be nice'.
It's absolutely imperative.
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It's the reason we have designed our lifestyle around educating our family.
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Every trip we plan, every class we teach is strategically designed to teach this list to our kids.
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But we knew that wasn't enough.
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We need a community to share it with. Not one we would find (we've been looking), but one we would have to create.
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Which is why WorldschoolAcademy.com exists.
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To create a community of like-minded students (parents & youth) who want to become the heroes of their own life story and develop the habits for a successful life.
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Our classes are LIVE online. It's a real, LIVE community.
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The youth meet once per week with Greg as their mentor. Four of our teens are in the class.
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Parents meet 1-2 times a month with both Greg and me.
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Our dream is to create an ongoing relationship with an intimate group of intentional families who want to share the journey of educating our families together -- and to eventually meet up in cool places around the world!
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If you are ready to join us, choose an option below:
Habits for a Successful Family
FOR PARENTS
$299
6-week Masterclass
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ALL-ACCESS PASS
FOR THE ENTIRE FAMILY
Parents & All Children
$249/mo
ALL Classes for Youth & Parents
Reach Upward!
AT NEUSCHWANSTEIN CASTLE
Rachel (& Greg) Denning
P.S. If you're still on the fence about joining us, check out what other parents and youth have said:
[My daughter] sure does enjoy mentoring with you, Greg! Thank you for being such an instrumental part of my kids’ learning, growth, and leadership!"
Jen, Parent
Greg Denning, my mentor, inspired me in so many ways, he inspired me to be brave, challenge myself, break through my limits, even though it would be hard,and to make my life a good, prosperous, and healthy life full of happiness."
- Anonymous Student
I just have to give the best thanks I can to you for your motivation and inspiration in our lives... thanks for getting me exited to wake up in the morning to get to my life and ideas. For helping me to see the people in my life in a new light of love. For reminding me that my role as a mom IS my greatest dream."
Sarah, Parent
Hey Mr. Denning! I just wanted to let you know that you are an AMAZING teacher and I love how uplifting and positive you are. You have truly changed my life and I love it! Thank you!"
Brandon, Student
I love that the first step for us or our youth is to actually know where we are trying go, what we are trying to achieve, what heights we are striving to reach... many of us take that for granted and don’t give it much thought. This is exactly what I was hoping to get from this course; a structured plan or a big picture that shows the actual steps."
Jeff, Parent
I just want to let you know how much Lucy has learned in [this class] this year. The books and discussions have challenged her to break out of her comfort zone and have courage to grow. I'm seeing her blossom and become in beautiful ways!"
Heather, Parent
I just want you to know that I'm getting so much out of it. This is such valuable material for parents. The things that you are sharing are inspiring, spot on, and making a difference in my parenting and in my family. I'm grateful that you follow your own dreams and mission so that you can bless and inspire others.
Thank you so much!
Sharleen, Parent
P.P.S. If you're STILL not sure, but would like to continue the conversation, please enter your name and email below!