Trusting your young adult college student is really hard to do—but one of the best things for a college-aged student is to have their parent's trust. That trust is essentially a parent's belief that their college student will be able to figure out whatever comes their way.
In this blog post, we’ll break down three ways you can show your support to your college student in a healthy way.
Do You Really Trust Your College Student?
I meet a lot of parents whose college students are not doing as well as they could be, and the parents don't really believe that their child will be able to figure out the challenges they are facing.
This underlying feeling is usually followed by:
Constant suggestions from the parent
The student continues to do what they think is best
The parents feel frustrated when their suggestions aren't embraced
The parent's feelings are then reinforced:the student won't be able to figure things out on their own.
And the loop continues!
One of the biggest pieces of advice I offer for parents of college students is to work on trusting their young adult children more.
Essential Advice for Parents of College Students
Send Them Reminders of Support
An occasional reminder of support from you as a parent, without any to-do's or reminders, can go a long way. Just a simple “I’m proud of you” or “You’re doing a great job in x,y,z” text or phone call can go a long way in showing them that you are rooting for them, and believe they can figure things out.
Offer Your Help When They Request It
Offering to help brainstorm or connect your college student to others with expertise in a specific area can be helpful—but only if that is what the student believes they need.
One key piece of advice for parents of college students is to have boundaries and allow your student to come to you for help if needed. This will show that you trust your child to make the right decisions in their life.
Refrain From Telling Them What They "Should" Do
Instead of immediately telling your young adult child what to do when they are facing an issue:
Take a deep breath, pause, and really listen to them.
Let them explain or rant about their whole situation.
Then, ask if they would like your advice.
Sometimes simply just being heard is all they need to help them make a decision. It’s also important to acknowledge that college is different now than it was when you were growing up. While your college student has a different perspective on the world and how to operate in it, they ultimately want the same result as you—to finish college successfully.
Why Trusting Your College Student Helps Them Succeed
As parents, we should acknowledge that our young adult children know themselves best. They are the ones having to take the action, and the ones managing the consequences of their actions, they have to trust themselves and it's a lot easier to do when they know their parents trust them to figure college out.
Do you trust your college student? Comment below!
Need More Support? Let’s Talk!
If you're thinking: 🔹 “But I'm determined to get my college student to the finish line of college graduation.”
🔹 “I'm feeling like I can't trust my college student because evidence has shown they can't be successful without my constant support”
👉 These are both great reasons to reach out to me and schedule a free consultation call today!
🎯Working with college students is my focus, so parents can focus on support and trust.
Now is a great time to reach out, as students are well into their second semester, but there's still plenty of time to get a handle on classes and college life, if you sense things aren't going well for your college student.
📅Let's talk about your student!
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