Kim Muench, Becoming Me Thought Leader
Parenting mistakes our generation made are not about blame, but about honest reflection and the opportunity to do better starting now.
Before you bristle at the title, stay with me.
This is not about shame. It is not about blame. It is about reflection. I am a mom of five and a certified conscious parent coach. I love our generation of parents. And I also believe that if we are willing to look honestly at where we missed the mark, we can change the trajectory for the next generation.
It is never too late to adjust.
Let’s talk about five ways our generation got parenting wrong and what we can do now.
5 Parenting Mistakes Our Generation Made
1. We Introduced Social Media Too Soon
We knew it was going to be a problem. We were warned. And yet, many of us allowed our kids onto social media earlier and more often than we should have.
Now we are parenting teens and young adults who have grown up comparing, scrolling, and consuming far more than their nervous systems were designed to handle. We are seeing anxiety, depression, social struggles, and attention challenges that are directly connected to early and excessive exposure.
And when schools shifted to bring your own technology, many of us had a sinking feeling. Phones in classrooms. Devices during the school day. Constant access. We worried. But most of us did not push back hard enough.
If you are parenting younger children right now, pay attention. Delayed access matters. Boundaries matter. You can still make different choices.
2. We Overscheduled in the Name of Success
Remember when we were kids and played multiple sports throughout the year? Basketball in the winter. Baseball in the spring. Tennis in the summer. Football in the fall. There was variety. There was downtime.
Now sports are year round. Specialization starts early. Club teams dominate. Everything feels high stakes because college tuition is outrageous and scholarships feel like the only path forward.
We pushed and pushed. We signed them up for tutors for standardized tests. We filled their afternoons and weekends so they would be well rounded and competitive.
And if I am being honest, there was also a badge of busy. When our kids were doing all the things, we felt productive. Important. Successful.
But constant activity does not build resilience. Sometimes it builds exhaustion.
3. We Struggled to Support Their Emotional Sensitivity
This generation of kids is different. They are more sensitive, more open minded, more fluid in how they see the world.
Many boys are deeply sensitive, and historically we did not do a great job helping them understand or express their emotions. We expected toughness. We expected silence. We expected them to power through.
At the same time, we pushed girls to succeed in spaces where they had been overlooked. That was necessary. But in some cases, we may have swung so far that boys began to feel unseen in new ways.
Our kids are emotionally aware. The question is whether we gave them the tools to navigate that awareness without shame.
4. We Raised Them in an Unsettled World
Let’s be honest. Our kids have grown up in a world that feels unstable.
Pandemics. School shootings. Lockdown drills. Information overload. Constant news cycles. Social media amplifying every crisis.
We did not grow up practicing active shooter drills. We did not grow up wondering if going to the movies or the mall was safe. Our kids did.
You cannot convince me that does not shape how they move through the world. They feel it. They absorb it. They internalize it.
And because they are online so much, they are informed earlier and more intensely than we ever were.
5. We Avoided Looking Within Ourselves
This is the big one.
Many of us were raised under a dominant parenting paradigm where parents were authority figures and children were expected to comply. We were not always seen or heard for who we truly were.
When we made mistakes, we were reprimanded. Often shamed. We learned to disconnect from our own emotions because it felt safer than being judged.
As adults, that can make it very hard to look inward. When something triggers us in our kids, we react from unhealed places rather than responding from awareness.
If we cannot sit with our own discomfort, we project it. Onto our kids. Onto their choices. Onto their struggles.
But here is the good news.
It is never too late to change.
It Is Not Too Late to Parent Differently
Reflection is not weakness. It is maturity.
We can acknowledge where we got it wrong without collapsing into guilt. We can choose to delay devices for younger kids. We can protect downtime. We can help boys and girls alike understand their emotions. We can work on our own triggers instead of projecting them.
I believe in us.
I believe we can shift from control to connection. From shame to awareness. From fear to curiosity.
Parenting is not about getting it perfect. It is about growing alongside our children.
And that growth can start today.
Want to hear it straight from Kim?
Watch the original video that inspired this article and see how she breaks it down with clarity, compassion, and lived experience. Sometimes, a voice and a face say more than words on a page. Watch now:
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About the Author:
Kim Muench (pronounced minch, like pinch with an “m”) is a Jai (rhymes with buy) Institute for Parenting Certified Conscious Parenting Coach who specializes in working with mothers of adolescents (ages 10+). Knowing moms are the emotional barometer in their families, Kim is passionate about educating, supporting and encouraging her clients to raise their children with intention and guidance rather than fear and control. Kim’s three plus decades parenting five children and years of coaching other parents empowers her to lead her clients into healthier, happier, more functional relationships with compassion and without judgment.
You can find out more about her mission and services at www.reallifeparentguide.com. She is on Facebook at Real Life Parent Guide, Instagram, and on LinkedIn as well. For additional support and encouragement, consider joining Kim’s group specifically supporting parents of emerging adults 18-30. They meet twice a week online. Check it out here.
