Things Parents Should Talk To Their Adult Kids About (So They’re Not Lost)

Here are some things parents should tell their adult kids, especially when they start having lives of their own

The thing about “adulting” is that it means learning and unlearning a lot of things. Many adult kids still live with their parents, since it’s really part of Filipino culture. But come the time they have to leave, there are some things they need to know. Especially if it involves work, money management, and most of all, health. Let’s be real: a lot of life’s misadventures happen because we weren’t informed beforehand.

Here are some things parents should talk to their adult kids about:

Family Disease History

Sure, it’s nice to share traditions—but we also unfortunately share diseases. Genetics is how we become more prone to or immune to certain diseases. The chances of getting cancer do have a genetic component, which means it can choose to skip or not for a generation. Usually, the most commonly passed down one is the chances of getting breast cancer.

Diabetes is also quite common. It doesn’t matter if it shows later in life. Better to know now than discover later that there were ways to prevent it.

Financial Assets

Everyone is trying to build their own generational wealth. But how can we do so when we’re not aware of what we have? Some may feel uncomfortable with telling their kids, thinking it might make them “lazy.” However, it does help especially if they’re trying to build their own business or buy their own land.

Navigating Corporate Culture

Unless they start their own business, most start by being an employee. Although every company has its own culture, some unspoken rules persist as patterns. That includes when to keep one’s head low or how to greet certain people. It goes a long way, especially since everybody’s just trying to survive.

Housekeeping Skills

Maintaining a house or a condominium isn’t cheap. What makes it expensive is when we constantly just replace the piece, not even checking specifically what’s broken. Of course, some do need to be changed after—give or take—ten or twenty years of service. But appliances are supposed to last longer than five years.

It’s also quite a wake-up call for adult kids when they discover how much work goes into making sure the house looks welcoming and not like a pigsty.

Family Members Living Abroad

Migration is normal for many Filipinos, especially when they feel they can make more outside. By letting our adult kids know if they have relatives in those countries, they learn that they’re not alone. They don’t have to navigate a foreign land by themselves. There’s always help around the corner, especially if they haven’t found a proper place yet, etc.

Why Parents Should Talk About These Things With Adult Kids

While adulting isn’t easy, that doesn’t mean it can be made easier. Having more information helps, especially when they start living on their own. Trial and error can be quite costly. When they’re living alone (physically), they’ll have no one to take care of them should they get sick.

As parents, we always wish that our kids could just live nearby. Or, some even dream that their kids never marry, have a stable job, and just live with them. But life always has other plans, and while we’ll never know exactly what those plans are, we can at least help our adult kids prepare for them.

More about parenting adult kids?

Understanding Your Young Adult: What Do We Know
Words That Adult Children Would Love to Hear From Their Parents
Double Standards On Kids’ Emotions: This Mom Points Out A Parenting Irony