Parent as if your kid’s adulthood depends on it

The poet Philip Larkin put it bluntly: "They f*** you up, your mum and dad. They may not mean to, but they do."

It’s a dreadful commentary on parental fate. Is there really no escape?

For what it’s worth, and it’s worth a lot, author Julie Lythcott-Haims wants to help mitigate the damage. So, all you parents out there, from the helicopters to the laissez-faires, there’s still time to make corrections! Listen in.

Julie Lythcott-Haims is the author of “How to Raise an Adult: Break Free of the Overparenting Trap and Prepare Your Kid for Success.”

A former dean of students at Stanford, Lythcott-Haims shares strategies that ultimately help lower the stress levels of parents and children, like letting children make their own mistakes, and remembering to make time for play.

She gave this talk at UW’s Kane Hall on October 1. KUOW’s Sonya Harris recorded the event.

This episode of Speakers Forum is part of KUOW’s partnership with the University of Washington Graduate School Public Lecture Series.

Tune in again soon for the next talk in the season: Using Data to Advance Racial Justice, featuring Sam Sinyangwe, co-founder of We The Protesters.