TED Talk - Jennifer Senior - For Parents, Happiness is a Very High Bar

Opening Your Time Together
In your small group, please discuss the following:
  • Share your names, where you live, and your children’s ages
  • What is something that has amazed you about the phase of life that your children are in right now?
  • On an imaginary spectrum from stressful (1) to joyful (10), how would you rate the daily experience of being a parent?  What aspects of parenting do you find to be the most stressful?

Watching the TED Talk
Discussing the TED Talk
  • In her talk, Senior tries to poke holes in the unquestioned parent mantra “All I want is for my children to be happy” – stating that happiness is not a goal unto itself, but a by-product of other things, that parents should not bear the responsibility for making their kids happy, and that chasing their happiness is stressing us out.  Do you agree with that?  Why or why not?
  • What are some goals that you as parents have for your children?  What times and places do you most see your children being shaped by those goals?  In what ways does your faith inform what your goals are?