Judith Pickens is the Senior Vice President for Program and Youth Development with the Boys & Girls Clubs of America. In this backstage interview with Michael Hirsch, she speaks about the importance of developing students and the impact it has on the parents and the community.

If you’d like to hear more, the audio from all six of the main sessions at the National Leadership Forum is now available here.

Hope you enjoy!

Tim

I am finishing a new book that will be released next June. Would you like to be in it?

I am looking for great ideas from people like you who have done something that has helped prepare a young person for adulthood, for life or for leadership. Ideas could be anything like…

* A rule you came up with at home

* A project you asked them to take on

* A challenge they undertook

* An experience you staged for them

* An assignment you gave them

I plan to add a chapter in my new book, Artificial Maturity, that will be full of “best practices” from people like you around the world. Your creativity may just help tens of thousands of parents, teachers, youth pastors, coaches, and managers do a better job raising up this new generation to become healthy adults.

(P.S. – If I use your idea, I will give you a shout out).  :o)

Use the comment section below or email to tim@timelmore.com

Thanks a million,

Tim

When I was in junior high, I ran on our track team. I specifically remember trying out for the 100 yard, low-hurdle competition. Wow. It was so much harder than the 100-yard dash. There were these barriers in the way that kept slowing me down, distracting me from getting to my goal. I eventually gave up and became a long-distance runner. I guess I’m more of a tortoise than a hare. The hurdles, however, have proven to be a great picture of life for me. Hurdles were never meant to prevent a runner from moving forward. They do, however, require athletes to jump them in order to progress. This may sound cliché, but life presents hurdles, too, that kids must jump in order to grow up. Sadly, some people, young or old, never make it past them and remain childish, even into their adult years. Instead, we pursue a life that’s faster and easier. The world we’ve created today, through technology and automation, has unwittingly erected some major barriers to jump. They’re becoming more ominous every year. They actually make healthy maturity difficult. Immaturity has little to do with age; it has much to do with perspective and experience. When it comes to building life-skills, technology is a blessing and a curse. Here are three hurdles that young people must jump in order to authentically mature:

1. Speed. It gets in the way of developing patience.

2. Convenience. It gets in the way of developing perseverance.

3. Passivity. It gets in the way of gaining genuine experience.

On Monday, I will elaborate on these three “hurdles” and suggest ways that we, as adults, can develop the virtues of patience, perseverance and experience in students.

Have a great weekend!

Tim