What is the real job of a parent these days?

In my case it’s like being Eddie Murphy, the guardian of The Golden Child (ren)

I’ll PM you my answer because no one but you and me and a few others would understand my answer.

The be all and end all for your child, you are their mentor and the one who helps them find who they are and will be in the world and its through you that they will learn and figure out this big world. You have to be their advocate (be their voice) in the world and know how to advocate for them in the best way possible, you need to be their voice of strength and reason.

Let them know that you love them.
Let them know when they fuck up.
Let them know that you love them.
Let them know to constantly try and better themselves.
Let them know that you love them.
Let them know that you are their parent before you are their friend.
Let them know that you love them.
Let them know what the real world is like.
Let them know that you love them.
Let them learn to think for themselves.
Let them know that you love them.
Let them know that being intolerant is unacceptable.
Let them know that you love them.

One thing not mentioned by any thus far is education. What do you feel is your job in regards to your child’s development socially & educationally?

Do you read with your child? Talk about documentaries? Take them to the library?
How active are you in your child’s development?

The first job of a parent is to set an example of how to live a satisfactory independent life. They will usually imitate your behavior, language, attitude and style of life.
Then, it’s to teach safety and daily tasks as they become necessary and the kids are able to accomplish those things. You don’t teach a 2 year old to tie shoes.
You give them opportunities to learn and socialize.
You help them learn when they are having difficulty figuring something out.
You correct them appropriately when they misbehave.
You teach them to be independent.
You love and respect them even though they are different from you in temperament and interests.

I think it changes a lot depending on where they are in life, but basically boils down to being their (loving) guide and host.

Show them the way, let them know what you know, support them when they explore, take care of them when they need to recharge, and give them what they need to be happy through it all.

To raise a decent human being. My desired end result: Happy, capable, compassionate adults.

I think it’s what it’s always been: to prepare them to lead their own lives, as competently, confidently, and happily as possible.

teaching them how to be good people is for family and the community that you establish (ie, religious, or MENSA if you’re ETpro, etc)
But there is way too much knowledge out there for the family to be the primary educator. Ask any homeschooling parents who tries to keep their children up to par, especially when they have a challenging question.

GQ. And I agree with you.

@Drhat I hear ‘go look it up’ a lot with no further input from parents. Reeks of apathy to me.

In my opinion, the most important thnig is to be there for them; don’t leave them hanging. Let you know that you love them, but show that you love them, too.

It is my job to provide my daughter with the skills, knowledge, and environment conducive to becoming a loving, productive, intelligent adult — hopefully before I drop dead.

My job is to not be a burden upon my children as we all grow older.

@RealEyesRealizeRealLies . . . What?

You’re children owe you as much time at the end of your life that you gave them at the beginning of thiers.

My job is to raise a competent adult who is capable of raising a competent adult in turn.

The rest is all gravy.

@KNOWITALL it’s a delicate balance between allowing the child to figure out how to solve problems by themselves for example academic problems vs providing just the right amount of help for them. Yes it’s wrong not helpful at all but also doing all the work for them it is not helpful to them either

I still like “go look it up” much better than “the answer is xxxxx” assuming you’ve taught them how to find what they’re looking for.

Teaching methods rather than trivia seems like a good path to take.

not saying the case @KNOWITALL is thinking of wasn’t apathetic, just discussing

With us, it was never “Go look it up,” but it was very often ”Let’s look it up.”

@Funkdaddy Following up like ‘so what did you find out about __’ is the difference. Some parents just want kids to go.

Be a good role model and teach your kids the 60% stuff they cannot learn at school. Because schools cannot do more than the 40%.