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The Parents' Guide to Developing Creative Kids · The Daily Writer

• 0:17
  SPEAKER_00: Welcome everybody to the Born to Create podcast.
• 0:20
  SPEAKER_00: My name is Kent Sanders and I'm your host.
• 0:22
  SPEAKER_00: I'm an author, musician, and teacher, but most importantly, I'm a husband and a dad.
• 0:27
  SPEAKER_00: Here on the show we talk about practices, habits, and strategies that help us live out our creative calling.
• 0:33
  SPEAKER_00: This is episode 33, and today we're going to be talking about how to develop creative kids.
• 0:39
  SPEAKER_00: You can find the post that accompanies this episode, as well as all the links at KentSanders.net slash creative kids.
• 0:48
  SPEAKER_00: Before we get into the content of this episode, I want to invite you to send in your questions on creativity, productivity, art, writing, or related topics, and I'll answer those here on the podcast and on my blog as well.
• 1:00
  SPEAKER_00: You can shoot me an email at Kent at KentSanders.net, or you can find me on Facebook and Twitter as Kent Sanders.
• 1:08
  SPEAKER_00: So let's dive in.
• 1:10
  SPEAKER_00: When you think about what you want your kids to accomplish, what comes to mind?
• 1:14
  SPEAKER_00: Many of us would say we want our kids to do their homework, get to bed on time, and get along with their siblings or friends.
• 1:22
  SPEAKER_00: It's hard to think long term when living with your kids seems to present challenges every day.
• 1:27
  SPEAKER_00: But let's dig a little bit deeper.
• 1:29
  SPEAKER_00: What do we truly want for our kids?
• 1:32
  SPEAKER_00: Beyond just being happy and healthy, we also want their lives to matter for something.
• 1:36
  SPEAKER_00: Deep down, we want them to make a positive contribution to society.
• 1:42
  SPEAKER_00: We live in a complex world with a lot of challenging problems.
• 1:45
  SPEAKER_00: We're going to need thinkers in the coming decades who can present creative solutions to the pressing problems of their day.
• 1:51
  SPEAKER_00: How can we help our kids to be more creative, not just in the short term, but in the long term as well?
• 1:57
  SPEAKER_00: The five strategies I'll share in this episode will help set up our kids for creative success in their lives both now and also in the future.
• 2:06
  SPEAKER_00: Number one is give them support and permission.
• 2:11
  SPEAKER_00: Our kids need to know that it's okay to be creative.
• 2:14
  SPEAKER_00: There is an immense pressure to conform to the crowd, especially as kids get older, but they need to know we support them and are going to be there to help them develop their creative gifts, even if it's not the path that we traveled in life.
• 2:27
  SPEAKER_00: Let me give you an example.
• 2:28
  SPEAKER_00: When I was in high school, I was in marching band, choir, and all of our theater productions as well, and my dad, as far as I can remember, was at every single performance.
• 2:38
  SPEAKER_00: I know that he must have been bored sometimes, and it certainly wasn't convenient to drive to some of those music events and competitions.
• 2:45
  SPEAKER_00: His interests were really geared more toward hunting and the outdoors and building things, but I always knew that my dad supported my involvement in the arts, even though I knew he wasn't personally as interested in it as I was.
• 2:58
  SPEAKER_00: Number two, give your kids a vision of what their lives could become.
• 3:04
  SPEAKER_00: I think that kids need to see what's possible.
• 3:07
  SPEAKER_00: Most people in their lives take the path of the least resistance and they never operate at their full potential.
• 3:12
  SPEAKER_00: But what can we do as parents to give them a vision for their lives?
• 3:16
  SPEAKER_00: How can we help them see what they could become?
• 3:20
  SPEAKER_00: One way is to encourage our kids to explore the lives of great men and women through movies, biographies, and meeting influential people face to face.
• 3:28
  SPEAKER_00: As the primary influencers in our kids' lives, we have to take the lead in helping and shaping them.
• 3:34
  SPEAKER_00: We can't just leave it to their teachers, to church leaders, or other people in their lives to help our kids live up to their potential.
• 3:41
  SPEAKER_00: We as parents have to be active and engaged in their lives.
• 3:45
  SPEAKER_00: Number three, give your kids opportunities to be creative.
• 3:50
  SPEAKER_00: This doesn't mean that your kids have to be involved in every activity at school or at church or in the community.
• 3:56
  SPEAKER_00: However, we should be on the lookout for the best opportunities for them to have new creative experiences that are going to help them to grow.
• 4:03
  SPEAKER_00: We can't do all this by ourselves.
• 4:06
  SPEAKER_00: You know, over the last couple of years, uh, something kind of cool that's happened is that my son has had the opportunity to help create and run the media at our church youth group services on Wednesday nights.
• 4:16
  SPEAKER_00: And this has been really cool because it's helped him to grow in his confidence and learn some skills that he wouldn't be able to learn in school or at home.
• 4:23
  SPEAKER_00: So I've definitely appreciated our youth group leaders at church and giving him that opportunity.
• 4:28
  SPEAKER_00: And a question I would present to you as a parent is what opportunities around you could help your kids grow as creative leaders?
• 4:37
  SPEAKER_00: Number four, give them an example to follow.
• 4:41
  SPEAKER_00: Parents, our kids need to see that we're more than just talk.
• 4:45
  SPEAKER_00: We must set an example of growth in our own skills and in our creative lives.
• 4:49
  SPEAKER_00: Our actions, not our words, are what really leave a lasting impression.
• 4:54
  SPEAKER_00: One of the skills that I'm trying to develop now is drawing.
• 4:57
  SPEAKER_00: Occasionally I will draw a comic for my son so he has something fun in his lunchbox.
• 5:02
  SPEAKER_00: And one day I was kind of shocked when he pulled out this stack of papers from his lunchbox, and those were the comics that I had drawn.
• 5:09
  SPEAKER_00: He had kept every single one of them.
• 5:11
  SPEAKER_00: I had no idea that my little comics meant that much to him.
• 5:15
  SPEAKER_00: Even though my drawing is really, really bad, he can see that at least I'm trying to grow in my skills as an artist and at least trying to do something new, and hopefully along the way it's giving him a few laughs as well.
• 5:28
  SPEAKER_00: Number five, give them tools and resources.
• 5:32
  SPEAKER_00: You know, there's a lot of things that we don't necessarily buy for our son.
• 5:36
  SPEAKER_00: He doesn't have the latest and greatest video game system, he doesn't have the fanciest or newest or coolest bike, and a lot of other things like that.
• 5:44
  SPEAKER_00: However, there are some other things that we have invested in pretty heavily.
• 5:47
  SPEAKER_00: For instance, books and Legos.
• 5:49
  SPEAKER_00: Those are two things that have helped expand his creative mind.
• 5:52
  SPEAKER_00: And I'm not suggesting, by the way, that video games are bad and you know bikes aren't bad or anything like that.
• 5:58
  SPEAKER_00: You know, we have several older video game systems and we have a couple bikes and all that stuff.
• 6:02
  SPEAKER_00: So don't get the impression I'm saying you can't buy anything, you know, expensive or technological for your kids because I don't think that at all.
• 6:08
  SPEAKER_00: I didn't want to throw in that caveat though.
• 6:10
  SPEAKER_00: Back to books and Legos, these are great because I think of these as an investment, not necessarily as just an expense.
• 6:18
  SPEAKER_00: Now, that's not to say that we go crazy with Legos, because you know, Legos aren't cheap if you've ever bought a Lego set for your kids or grandkids or something.
• 6:26
  SPEAKER_00: Usually we buy these on sale, and a lot of the Lego sets that my son has have been Christmas gifts and birthday gifts and stuff like that.
• 6:33
  SPEAKER_00: But I admit I've really enjoyed playing with those as well.
• 6:36
  SPEAKER_00: So we've had a lot of fun around Legos and our family.
• 6:40
  SPEAKER_00: So whether it's bikes and video games or books and Legos or something else, it's important to make room in our budgets if we're able to.
• 6:48
  SPEAKER_00: Now, again, I don't think this always means spending a ton of money.
• 6:51
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe it doesn't even mean spending any money.
• 6:55
  SPEAKER_00: It just means that as far as we're able to as parents, we've got to give our kids resources and tools to help them grow in their creative life.
• 7:03
  SPEAKER_00: One thing that we did uh not too long ago was my son and I made this cool 3D hologram for smartphones.
• 7:09
  SPEAKER_00: We found a tutorial on YouTube and we just cut up uh an old CD case, if you remember what CDs are, and we made this cool little hologram deal, and it was really a lot of fun.
• 7:19
  SPEAKER_00: Didn't cost us a penny except destroying an old CD case, which we don't listen to those anymore anyway, so it didn't make any difference.
• 7:27
  SPEAKER_00: So, parents, we've got to be intentional about helping our kids explore their creative side.
• 7:32
  SPEAKER_00: It doesn't have to cost a lot of time or a lot of money.
• 7:35
  SPEAKER_00: The most important thing is that they know we care about their creative development.
• 7:39
  SPEAKER_00: And through taking small steps over time and by setting a positive example, we can help set up our kids for long-term success in life.
• 7:48
  SPEAKER_00: So, what are some ways that you have helped your kids be more creative?
• 7:52
  SPEAKER_00: I'd love to hear your thoughts.
• 7:53
  SPEAKER_00: You can join the conversation and find the post and the links that accompany this episode at KentSanders.net slash creative kids.
• 8:03
  SPEAKER_00: When you visit my site, you'll find all kinds of great resources to inspire your creativity.
• 8:07
  SPEAKER_00: I'd also love to share a gift with you when you subscribe to my newsletter.
• 8:11
  SPEAKER_00: You can check it out and learn more about my books, writing, and services at KentSanders.net.
• 8:17
  SPEAKER_00: I'd love to connect with you and you can send me a tweet at Kent Sanders, and you can find me on Facebook and Instagram at simply Kent Sanders.
• 8:25
  SPEAKER_00: I hope that you'll also check out our Born to Create Facebook group by visiting KentSanders.net slash Facebook group.
• 8:32
  SPEAKER_00: Until next time.
• 8:34
  SPEAKER_00: Remember that you were born to create and designed to make a difference.
• 8:38
  SPEAKER_00: What will you do with the time you have left?
• 8:54
  unknown: Any other things?