Tuesday, June 16, 2015

Accounting for Luck on the Parenting Curve



Everything is measured by results these days. Conventional wisdom knows: fair play is overrated; skill and effort are too subjective; and excuses exist only in the realm of whiny losers.  Just give us results.
Few will admit that the end justifies the means until the end looks so good. Cheating on the front end (deflating the football or hacking into opponent’s computers) is cool when championship rings adorn several fingers.  Cheating on the tail end (e.g. twisting the measures) is justified as marketing.  Data driven decisions tout results but too often are based on a shallow review of the data or downright unreliable and misleading stats.  Even when everything is on the up-and-up, results are still skewed by the powerful phenomenon of pure luck.
This past week, I spent time with my three grown children at my home, at my daughter’s home and via skype.  If my children are the “results” by which my parenting is measured, one could argue that I am the greatest father of all time. My kids are awesome. Am I bragging? You’re d@*n right.  My kids are the greatest, and if you don’t believe it, just ask me.
Amazed by their overwhelming awesomeness, I began contemplating how my feeble parenting skills produced such undeniably positive results.  The answer, of course, is luck.  Parenting is the hardest job on Earth.  If you think you’re an expert, just wait until you actually have children.  Then, you’ll be on your knees like the rest of us, praying and hoping they turn out all right. 
There are some gruesomely terrible parents out there, and I suppose there are some can’t-miss, blue-chip parents. But for most of us, we struggle to do the best we can and hope for some luck.  

So, Happy Father’s Day to all the Dads out there.  And, good luck!

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