Motivation

What we did was introduce sports to our daughters and suggest if they wanted to continue playing softball, they could throughout high school and into college. It worked for our youngest daughter who had little interest in going to college. She went to a local university on a softball scholarship, made many friends and ended up loving college. At 14, I didn't say much to them but dropped hints as they got a little older. If the teenager has a role model, sometimes that will help. I used myself as a role model of what not to do when it came to education. I only have 1 year of college but my husband has a degree. I did a comparison with our kids and reminded them I couldn't make it alone on what income I could earn. All 3 of our kids went to college and completed 4 years plus. What I did with our oldest, after she threatened to quit high school, was insist she get a job during her high school years. She worked at McDonald's for about 6 months and hated every minute. She did not quit high school, went to college and earned her undergraduate and master's degrees in psychology. She's very successful today.

Hi there Naty! I think the best way to motivate a 14 year old to start thinking about college and university studies is to give him or her a feel of the real world. It all depends upon the person's interest though. Maybe whatever he's into, have the person spend time with someone who is working in that field so they can talk about the work, the ups and downs of it, and so on.

The best way to do it is to keep him/her in a correct environment...if the environment is good then he will automatically grow....

Our current school district has a class for the 8th graders about college prep and what classes to take. It was a good motivation to get my son thinking about it. I bring up careers when we're out sometimes and talk about would you like a job like that to him. Or what would you feel like having a job like that (one he wouldn't want for instance). I'm hoping to get his thinking turned toward keeping the good grades in school and what training he wants. I'm also trying to get some decent study skills going as he'll need them and will make all those years ahead easier to deal with. I have some success, but boy it's hard with these teenager who know it all. What I really want is for him to get some training - college, or technical. This economy is going to make it more competitive to get a job.

My way of motivating younger kids within my family is to give some examples of our own relatives who went to college and who did not. Some have good lives (financially) because of their education while there are some who have all the degrees but didn't do so well in life. There are others who didn't have a bachelor's degree but was able to make a living out of their hardworkd and creativity. By citing your own relatives as examples, it might give the younger ones a clearer example on how a college education or no college education will impact their future lives. This way, you are not really pushing them to do something that they might not want, but they can get ideas on what would be the results or consequences of their decisions. Good luck!

I think that you should ask them what they want to do as a career. Help them by researching online to find out more about the career and look into degree requirements for specific positions. Going to school for something they have an interest in is always more appealing than going to school to learn the basics.

I wish I knew. i would be thrilled if my 19 year old son was interested. he went to college for a few weeks and decided it wasnt for him and is now hanging around. I guess he thinks m and or d are going to take care of him forever.

I think we will told them about the success stories of great men.

Naty, I've always enjoyed music. one way people got me interested in college was by telling me all of the different things I could do with music while in college and after I graduate. Maybe that same method could work for you...find ways his interests can be enhanced by going to college. Hope this helps in some way. Good luck :-)