Raising Tomorrow's Leaders: A Call to Parents and Society

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🎶 Parents listen to your children 🎶
🎶 We are the leaders of tomorrow 🎶
🎶 Try to pay our school fees 🎶
🎶 And give us sound education 🎶

Some years back, as children in primary school, we sang the chorus heavily as we marched into our various classes, and when we'd all settled down, we would playfully repeat the chorus as we faced our classmates. The whole class would erupt into noise that it would take a teacher to come and keep us silent.

Even when we got home, we sang the chorus over again until our parents listened to us, especially when we were trying to convey the messages from our teachers that they should pay our school fees on time before we were sent out of school. No parent would definitely want their child to be sent out because of embarrassment, so they did what was necessary.

Children are the leaders of tomorrow.

Indeed! And that's true! Growing up, I'd always thought children being leaders would mean getting to a higher position and becoming president of the nation, governors, senators, etc. But it's not only about that. Even in our various places of work, schools, homes, and society, we are always a leader in one way or another. A firstborn child is always a leader in the home to his or her younger ones. A senior colleague at work is a leader to his or her junior colleagues, and so on like that.

But our attitudes and manner of approach determine whether we would be good or bad leaders, and that's where the role of parents and society comes in.

Parents are caregivers. They are like small gods to children. They are in a position to guide and guard them - from being young and dependent to growing up and becoming independent, where they can stand on their feet and make decisions without always seeking their parents' consent. This shows how they have been trained by them.

Parents are role models. This means they must act in the right way that children would want to embrace and follow. They are leaders to their children, and they must ensure every good moral is taught by them and transferred to every child. They must ensure they have good attitudes toward everyone around them and should learn to understand people's perspectives.

Parents should teach kids how to respect people and never think their opinions matter most or are always right. They need to be taught that everyone's opinion is valid, and even when they are wrong, they need to admit that instead of letting their ego (pride) get the best of them.

Children are easily bent to instructions when they are still young, and as the Holy Bible says, "Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old, he will not depart from it" (Proverbs 22:6). When parents take their time to give children proper training from childhood, they become responsible as they grow up.

When parents fail to give time to their kids - teaching them the right things they need to know to be responsible, it becomes hard for such children to respect or embrace good morals in society, and they become a nuisance around everyone. When they aren't taught how to treat others right and humbly, they act the opposite and become bad leaders.

Children should be trained on how to be good leaders right from the home. They say charity begins at home. Little things like helping to wash the dishes, mopping the floor, guiding the younger ones, and assisting them with their homework - these small acts make a difference as they grow. Wherever they find themselves among people, they practice what they have learnt.

_Chatgpt

Becoming a good leader starts with serving others. Parents should teach them how to be humble toward everyone regardless of their status. This is done by ensuring they respect their kids, too, because they deserve it.

Once children see this act from them, it's easier for them to follow the same line because they have seen an example from their parents. This makes them become good leaders no matter where they may be.

Society, too, has roles to play in the lives of every child in becoming good leaders of tomorrow - roles like providing opportunities that help children engage in activities that foster a sense of belonging and responsibility.

For instance, at meetings, schools, or events, children should be given roles to play to showcase their talents and skills. This would help them learn to be responsible and know what they need to do for the welfare of others.

Society should be made up of leaders with good moral ethics such as integrity, honesty, and fairness so that when children see these values being shown to them, they also become like them. In that way, they lead by example and not just by words because children are good observers.

In conclusion, children are the leaders of tomorrow. Parents will always grow old and become inactive. Children will then take over the responsibility of caring for those around them, and the way parents train them will determine the outcome they get from them.

So, they must sacrifice everything - time, energy, finances, etc. while they can, before it's too late. The same goes for society, as they are also responsible for their future.

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_{This post is inspired by the prompt from the Hive Reachout Community which can be found here and I invite @toluwanih @marsdave @emerald24 to participate, too.}

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