As a parent, we are our teen’s biggest cheerleaders on and off the stage. Yet, having a great team of adults for your teen creative artist can make a huge difference in how they show up and progress in their art for the better. Be mindful of who is influencing your teen’s development, and don’t be afraid to suggest a change if a relationship isn’t providing what your teen needs.
Here are just a few of the benefits of a great team supporting and guiding your teen
Experience and Expertise:
Adults with experience in your teen’s art or arts of choice offer valuable real-world guidance and expertise to help the teen artist develop their skills and reach their full potential. Having traversed a similar passion, they can offer insight from their own experiences to enhance your teen’s relationship with their art. They can also offer advice on managing the more challenging moments that come as your teen works to figure out new skills and goals.
Working with and learning from someone with demonstrated expertise can ensure that your teen is on the a path that aligns with their goals. They are also more likely to achieve their goals more efficiently.
Skill Development:
Having studied the same creative art as your teen allows an adult to accurately assess where your teen is at and where your teen needs to enhance their skills. They will have a different perspective on how to structure a roadmap that leans in where more attention is needed and builds upon the skills that are already well-practiced and developed.
This type of assessment allows your teen to make adjustments and improve. If changes need to be made, the adult will have the perspective to see this and course-correct for maximum growth. Being more efficient in gaining new skills can help your teens creative journey be more enjoyable in the long run.
Mentorship:
Adult mentors and role models are wonderful resources and sources of inspiration for your teen creative artist. Imparting important life lessons, guidance, empathy are only a few of the benefits a great mentor can offer. They can also provide insights on how to handle the pressures and challenges that come with your teen’s art.
Your teen’s mentors and role models are also a great resource for you as a parent. A suggestion, observation, or insight offered from a parent may be rejected without much thought. Yet the exact same words coming from a trusted adult whom your teen sees as a neutral party may be willingly embraced and acted upon. If you feel there is something related to your teen’s art that is important for them to hear, looping their favorite mentors and role models into the quest may lead to a more open and receptive response.
Emotional Support:
Pursuing a creative art can come with a unique set of emotional challenges. Vulnerability, shame, stress, anxiety, disappointment, and competition are only some of the emotional roller coasters a young artist will need to learn to ride. A supportive team of adults can provide emotional support and help the teen creative navigate the highs and lows of their journey. By providing empathy, compassion, and a genuine interest in promoting your teen, these adults are providing a boost to for your teens self-confidence.
Access to Resources:
If your teen is seriously considering a career in their art, a well-connected team can provide access to resources such as advanced or invite-only training, seminars, and connections that can enhance the artist’s development and opportunities.
This type of guidance and access to resources may prove invaluable for your teen as they make decisions about future plans that may include continued development, college, a gap year, or lauching into entrepreneurship as a working artist.
Accountability and Discipline:
A great and invested team of adults can help instill discipline and accountability in your teen creative artist’s daily routine, ensuring they stay committed to their goals, know when to take breaks, and how to avoid distractions. They can help your teen with goal setting and planning and assist them in mapping short, medium, and long-term plans for optimum skill development.
By helping your teen identify the skills an knowledge they need to develop, they are more likely to hold accountability for those goals. Knowing the specifice outcomes or milestones they should be reaching for can create discipline in achieving them.
Fun and Playfulness:
On the opposite side of accountability and discipline, a great team of adults who support your teen’s creative arts journey can also sound a warning bell if your teen is losing the joyful side of their art. Having adults who remind them why they love their art and that sometimes the best goal is to have no goal can help you and your teen keep perspective and balance. They may use examples from their own life of how they stay connected to the reason they chose to pursue the art and why having fun and taking breaks from progress can be a great – and necessary – endeavor.
Conclusion:
Having a great team of adults for your teen creative artist is a great way to provide additional support and guidance as they develop their relationship with their art. Check in and be aware of who is influencing your teen’s journey. It has been said we are a product of our environment and the five people we spend the most time with. A great team who supports your teen can help lead to great outcomes.
