There is lots of talk about Rockstars here and here, but I am going to talk about the Rockstar under your roof… the Rockstar you are raising.  I have three Rockstars in my house, and only one of them is a musician.  The musician, my middle son Ethan, is an accomplished guitarist and studies music in college.  He may well become the the kind of Rockstar we listen to on our iPods.  But my other non-musician kids are Rockstars too.  They are the Rockstars of whatever it is they want to pursue, whatever it is that captures their interest and passion.  They are Rockstars because I tell them they are.  They are Rockstars because I believe in them.  They are Rockstars because I love them.

RAISE ROCKSTARS, NOT HELL!

To help them become Rockstars I encourage my kids to pursue their dreams, to do whatever they want to do, and to do it as best they can.  I encourage them to pursue their dreams with three P’s: Pride, Passion and Professionalism.  When I see them doing that I do my best to praise them and lift them up (and tell them to try again if something doesn’t go quite the way they expected it to – because Rockstars keep at it).  Rockstars don’t give up, they practice more.  They learn new tricks and try different things.  Rockstars are confident.  While they thrive on the praise and adoration of others, they don’t need it.  They KNOW they are that good.  A Rockstar knows how to pat themselves on the back if that’s what it takes to plow ahead toward a goal.  As a parent it is my job to be the manager, agent and producer.  It’s my job to make my kids feel like Rockstars every opportunity I can.

Whether they ever touch an instrument or microphone or not, I WANT my kids to be Rockstars.  Don’t you?

Jeff Sass is the proud dad of ZEO (Zach, 20, Ethan, 18 and Olivia, 17).  He is also a seasoned entertainment and technology exec and active social media enthusiast.  You can see more of Jeff’s writing at Sassholes! and Social Networking Rehab.