This Generation Youths

Not to sound too Oprah-ish, but I was reflecting on the advice I would give my younger self, which is in harmony with the gifts I share with my own sons as well as the youth I am fortunate to mentor.
Although I fared well in an extremely volatile environment, these lessons would have saved me from some unnecessary mistakes and setbacks. We are currently in a very challenging and hostile environment. Unfortunately, today’s youth cannot afford to make the same bad decisions we made a generation ago.
I have been given some valuable gifts in my lifetime, but none has been more valuable and fruitful than the gift of knowledge and wisdom. Divine wisdom says “there’s more joy in giving than receiving,” so I generously give these jewels quite often.
Jewel No. 1: Think before you act. The simple but effective process of thought will help you avoid making critical mistakes that could cost you your freedom, education or your life. “. . . Thinking ability will safeguard you.” — Proverbs.
Jewel No. 2: Find an adult mentor. A responsible adult knows what is best for your well-being. Even if you have to sacrifice your reputation with your friends, draw close to an adult who you know has your best interest at heart. Ideally this should be your parent. Friends will come and go but your parents will be an unconditional and lifelong source of love and support. Don’t get this confused!
Jewel No. 3: Do not be a follower. Avoid being part of the crowd. Without being a loner, you can separate yourself from the group of people who are not involved in positive things and still have a social life. Avoid following popular trends that could lead to a high-risk lifestyle, such as becoming so obsessed with materialism that you will do illegal activities to obtain certain things.
Jewel No. 4: Be humble. In the current environment, it is popular to be haughty or arrogant. Such attitudes tend to prevent an individual from developing healthy relationships. Being humble allows you to be open to learning from elders and making adjustment to become a better person.
Jewel No. 5: Establish a set of values. There are many deep cultural, social and spiritual values that will benefit all people. However, I recommend three simple and basic set of values for youth: life, education, freedom. If you place a high value on each of these and consider them in your decisions, it will affect the choices you make. Put simply, if you value your life you will think twice about drinking and driving. If you value your education you won’t threaten a teacher, which will get you expelled. If you value your freedom, you will avoid criminal behavior the could lead to incarceration.
Jewel No. 6: Maintain emotion stability. Managing emotions is absolutely vital for navigating through these critical times that we are currently living in. Emotions run high in dealing with personal matters, family matters, work relationships, even in sporting events there has been incidents that go bad due to a loss of emotional control. If you are in control of your emotions most incident will not escalate.  Remember, “life is 10 percent what happens to us and 90 percent how we react to it” — Charles Schwindle
With an alarming increase in police violence against black youth in particular, there is a great need for special urban survival training. These lessons should be drilled and instilled in every youth these days.

By: Deon D. Price
Deon D. Price is an Author and youth life skills coach who lives in Fairfield, CA.