The Power of Peer Pressure

A couple of years ago I read an article that stated squarely that no matter what parents teach their children, at the end of the day, friends will determine their destiny. My eyebrows raised and as I pondered and tossed around the finality of the statements in the article, I decided finally that this phenomenon cannot hold true and has been proven wrongly by all the great thinkers of the world; to name one, James F.

Cooper.

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"All greatness of character is dependent on individuality. The man who has no other existence than that which he partakes in common with all around him will never have any other than an existence of mediocrity." The responsibility therefore rests on us, both parents and educators, to teach youth the power of individualism, excellence and the power of peer pressure, the kind that raises benchmarks.
Teenagers are exposed to peer pressure every day, both kinds; good and bad.
Nobody is immune and it is essential for teenagers to possess the ability to decipher and resist.

Are teenagers equipped with the tools necessary to avoid succumbing and yielding to the wrath and turmoil associated with negative peer pressure? (alcohol, drugs, teasing, smoking) That is the real challenge for parents and teens.
As youths explore at this most impressionable age, one wants to ensure that they are secure, strong, highly confident and that they understand the benefits of entertaining discussions without actually accepting everything in order to fit in.
Essentially, it is important that teenagers have their own set of standards, and yearn to demand excellence and quality of themselves and others.

A great way to instill this is by enforcing mutual respect between family members at home and encouraging discussions about the possibility and effects of standing alone and even being excluded by not yielding to 'bad' peer pressure.

Not all peer pressure is a negative thing. There is power in peer pressure once teenagers have the ability to make good, selective choices with regards to friends and decisions, in effect the ability to decipher, think and own one's own mind.

Friends sometimes raise benchmarks in achieving goals and this is good peer pressure in one's journey to success, a journey that is decided by each teenager.

So as everyone progresses along, teenagers and adults, there will be great resistance at times.
Always remember that opposition usually comes from the mediocre thinkers. It is crucial that one does not succumb to such majorities to ensure and secure one's very own freedom and success.

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."A man who does not think for himself does not think at all"..

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Oscar Wilde.
by Simone Galy-Laquis