10 Tips for Teenage Parents, brought to you by ARISE Life Skills & Training, North Palm Beach, FL

Teenage parents have one foot in childhood and the other in adulthood. Being a parent at such a young age often leads to anger, stress and resentment. Educating yourself about parenting and learning all you can about how to be an effective mom or dad are the best things you can do to ensure that your child grows up happy, healthy and well-adjusted. Here are 10 simple things you can do to be a better teenage parent.

1. Realize that carefree days spent at the beach or the mall are over. Your child is your first priority, and child care is a full-time job.
2. Note that the period between conception and birth brings tough decisions, mixed emotions and a self-evaluation for the future.
3. Realize that your parents may be mourning the dreams they had for your future. Know that anger will pass, especially if you and your partner can prove that you can deal responsibly with the situation.
4. Sit down with a piece of paper and list your goals in life as well as your current resources. Identify the needs of a child and how your goals and resources will have to be adapted to meet them.
5. Be assured that no matter what others tell you, your life is not over; it is just taking a different direction.
6. Know that family stability is necessary for the growth and development of a child.
7. Budget your income before your child is born. Babies tend to be expensive, and the more savings you have in reserve, the better.
8. Realize that babies cry because it’s the only way they can communicate their feelings to you.
9. Be aware that statistics suggest that teenage parents are more likely than older parents to strike their children. They tend to have less experience with children, are less patient with their child’s development and have a strong belief in physical punishment.
10. Respond to the needs of your child. He wants, and often needs, his needs to be met NOW, no matter how exhausted you feel.

10 Quotes for Success, Part 4, brought to you by ARISE Life Skills & Training

Sometimes we all need a little inspiration when life gets rough. Throughout history, great thinkers have come up with fantastic nuggets of wisdom. The ARISE Get Smart! Series is a virtual Fort Knox of these golden pieces of advice. Enjoy!

ARISE Life Quotes for Success, Part 4

1. “One machine can do the work of fifty ordinary men. No machine can do the work of one extraordinary man.” – Elbert Hubbard
2. “We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, therefore, is not an act but a habit.” – Aristotle
3. “Nothing on Earth can stop the man with the right mental attitude from achieving his goals; nothing on Earth can help the man with the wrong mental attitude.” – Thomas Jefferson
4. “What sculpture is to a block of marble, education is to a human soul.” – Joseph Addison
5. “If a man empties his purse into his head, no man can take it away from him. An investment in knowledge always pays the best interest.” – Benjamin Franklin

10 Tips for Finding & Keeping a Job, brought to you by ARISE Life Skills & Training

In these tough economic times, employers are hiring fewer people, making the pool of applicants more and more competitive. Here are 10 tips for finding and holding on to a rewarding job. For more life skills lessons or to schedule a staff training session on anger management, please visit the ARISE website: http://www.ariselife-skills.org.

1. Be prepared to fill out an application. Write down and bring with you all important information: names of your previous employers; dates of employment; duties and salaries at past jobs; lists of your skills, education and training; names, current addresses and phone numbers of references; and a drivers license and social security number.
2. Be prepared to “sell yourself.” Don’t be shy about discussing the things you do well.
3. Drop off your resume or ask to fill out an application even if a company is not hiring at the time; they might need you in the future.
4. Prepare for the possibility of an on-the-spot interview when picking up an application.
5. Do some homework on the company you want to work for. Know exactly what kind of work they do or products they produce. Find out how long they have been in your city. This way, you will be better able to talk about why you want to work for this business and why you think you should be hired.

Taneka’s Tales: Urban Fables brought to you by ARISE Life Skills & Training

Everyone loves a good story. Stories are memorable. They inspire empathy, encourage imagination and have the capacity to be great teaching tools. Most kids and teens have trouble sitting still for lecture, but they will gladly listen to a story. Tell them a good tale, and you teach life skills through a “side door” in their mind.