The 7 Worst Things Good Parents Do

Topics covered: Baby Your Child, Put Your Marriage Last, Push Your Child into Too Many Activities, Ignore Your Emotional or Spiritual Life, Be Your Child's Best Friend, Fail to Give Your Child Structure, and Expect Your Child to Fulfill Your Dreams are the other "worst" things to do according to this book. Parents from each generation have probably made errors with different things, but for today's parents, this book highlights many of the current parenting problems. Adults who are 30+ still living at home, adults in college who spend money like water and are racking up a load of debt. Adults who at work feel entitled and compain if they have to work extra hours, and feel slighted if they are not awarded at work for every little thing they do...etc. (Many think the focus on "self esteem" was the beginning of today's parenting problems) The best advice is that you need to be a parent now and not worry about being your child's friend. When they are parents themselves, they will finally understand things from your point of view as a parent and you can be friends then. Reading this book is really eye opening and if you follow the suggestions in the book, parenting will really be a lot easier. I have personally made many of these changes with my kids and it really makes parenting so much more enjoyable. I'd also recommend John Rosemond, A Family of Value.

My husband and I had very different point of views concerning education... We agreed on how to raise our son, but he felt a lot of guilt in disciplining is 9 year old who never had any rules, structure, and boundaries in her young life. This book helped him understand that discipline equals love and explained the ABC of parenting very well by showing the direct effect of behaviors through simple examples. We all fall into pitfalls trying to do our best, but it can be hard sometimes and this book reinforce our conviction that we are our children's guides and we must prepare them to live in society.

I have to disagree with some of the previous critics. The title is meant to attract the attention of some of us like yourself looking for a smidgen of parenting advice from 2 very qualified Authors on the subject. I read the book over this past weekend and couldn't put it down. It has confirmed to me that some things I have been already thinking are okay to implement in our family and not unmarked territory. This book also validates some old fashioned family values and made me realize that we all know parents who are struggling with these very issues. After reading this book I have educated myself just that much further in how to avoid these family dividing mistakes.

I have read all of the previously books written by John and Linda Friel and made a point of reading their latest when I heard it was out. The contents are matter of fact; to the point and so sensible. Some of the "mistakes" are regarded as the 'norm' and it is refreshing to read how to make changes in these inconsistent behaviours. A thoroughly interesting and helpful guide for the very responsible task of parenthood.

This is the most timely parenting book on the market. The Friels have captured THE essential mistakes made by contemporary parents. They provide clear solutions that are based not only on their clinical experience as psychologists and personal experience as parents, but also on solid psychological research. I thought that the chapters on "Putting Your Marriage Last," "Babying Your Child," and "Ignoring Your Emotional And Spiritual Life" were especially important given the direction the American family has taken over the past 15 years. I enthusiastically recommend this book!