A SEEMINGLY UNIVERSAL law of parenthood involves a deep-seated desire within us to see our kids succeed in life by doing well in a chosen career or vocation.
One of the best times to act on that parental instinct, according to trainor Mae Legaspi, is around the child's third year in high school, as he begins looking forward to college.
Her extensive experience with Filipino high school and university students has led Legaspi, who has a Master of Arts in Family Ministry and Counseling from the Ateneo de Manila University, to conclude that helping a child find his passion at this stage serves him effectively for the rest of his life.
"Help him find out what he likes to do and what he is good at. The earlier he discovers that, the better for him," she says. He will then be able to choose the right college course for himself, focus on it, and, fueled by passion, excel in it. With the right degree, the right job then follows.
The formula is not rocket science for majority of parents whose main investment in their child's future would be a college education. However, Legaspi's experience as a mentor of university students in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and in Metro Manila as part of a Christian youth ministry points out that many college students don't know what they want and what they are good at.
"Filipino children in particular tend to just follow the course recommended by their parents--usually unwittingly chosen without strong focus on the child's gifts and talents," says Legaspi, who heads her own training and organization development company and holds workshops for high school students.
"The result is stress, untapped giftedness and much unhappiness."
Legaspi's position is supported by a recent US study headed by Jean Chatzky of 5,000 individuals and their financial standing. According to the study, the wealthy or those with investable assets of nearly $2 million in 2008 tended to be more passionate about what they do in life--having known early what they are good at and having had less career shifts than most.
This is in contrast to other individuals who live from paycheck to paycheck or are constantly in debt.
By helping third year high school students discover their passions, they have time to "road-test" the skills that support them and find out more about college courses over the summer and before the college entrance exams for the major universities are held--usually around October of their fourth year.
Legaspi emphasizes the need for a child to undergo the discovery process and own his passions. It is not enough for him to go through a series of tests that measure his skills and simply list his propensities.
"That would be like marrying someone--minus the courtship, the process of falling in love--simply because tests show your personalities are compatible," she says.
Legaspi's one-day workshops for high school students and even college freshmen and sophomores aim to help them become aware of their "20-percent spike," as Richard Koch describes the powerful vital characteristics that define an individual. By nurturing and growing these "distinctive strengths"--rather than the balance of the 80-percent that makes up an individual--one is better prepared for the future.
(Legaspi's workshop, "Using my Passions and Skills to Plan for College and for Life," will be held Nov. 7 and 14 at the East Asian Pastoral Institute, Ateneo de Manila University. Call 921-3711 or 0920-9134690.)