Entitlement

There are so many books on parenting.  There is so much advice out there on parenting (solicited or non-solicited.) Family, friends, church, teachers, principals, coaches and even people in the stores seem eager to give you a tip or two for your situation.  Have you tried...?  Have you done ....?  What about ....? Maybe if you ...

As a parent, I believe a lot of it is trial and error.  Opps, that didn't work out the way I thought it might.  Oh, I might have to remember that one!  Most parents try the best that they can and do what they do out of love. I will admit right here, I am NOT a perfect parent.

Recently, I've noticed that my son, who now is 8 years old, seems to have a big time issue with entitlement. I am now scratching my head and wondering how did we get here.  What steps did I take to lead to this attitude that "I don't have to take responsibility for my actions" and "I want WHAT I want" and "I can make the decisions... no one tells ME what to do".  Yikes. It's super ugly.  I thought I had been careful. I thought I did the right things.  I don't indulge my kiddos at the store.  If they want something, they have to come with their chore money.  That's right, I made them do work around the house to earn income.  I may buy an occasional treat, like gum or a candy bar.  Even that is more or less tied to some other POSITIVE behavior.  It had to be earned.

Now it seems to run right into his interactions with others. When he does wrong to another person, there is little remorse. There is little feeling sorry.  There is only blame.  "It wasn't me... it was (insert friend, sister, animal, etc. here)... they did...".  There is no accepting responsibility of his actions.

One article I found, calls it Narcissistic behavior.

As a parent, I hope it is a phase. I hope it is something that will get turned around quickly.