Parenting In Black Swan Times & The Weekly Ideas Roundup
The Silicon Valley Bank crash and the top five stories for parents on the future of learning, work, and life readiness
Issue 21:
03.11.2023
I live in San Francisco, and since Thursday, the collapse of Silicon Vally Bank and what that ripple out could look like has dominated the mindshare, discussion, and ecosystem. Estimates say 50% of venture-backed startups and funds banked at SVB, and this collapse has been described as an "existential level" black swan event.
Black swan events are those that are unpredictable beyond what is typically expected and have potentially severe consequences. COVID, the Internet, and September 11th are all Black Swan events -and within families and local communities, all kinds of similarly jarring personal and professional events fit this category.
My kids are 16, 13, and 10. Over the weekend, they've heard and seen that their parent’s friends, family friends, and neighbors are apprehensive about what this means. And each of the kids, in their way, is struggling to understand how something so big fails fast. It helps to understand that SVB is very present in the Bay Area. They are a lead sponsor for the NPR morning news, sports tournaments, food banks, and music festivals. And so, for our kids and their friends, this seemingly overnight failure of a big bank is jarring. As one darkly joked, with FTX and SVB, maybe we should buy like Scrooge McDuck and put money under our mattresses.
For parents, it can seem, individually and collectively, like “black swan” events are stacking up more frequently on us - and in our kid's headspaces and awareness. And it increases the sense of uncertainty, stress, and anxiety for parents and kids.
At their core, kids of all ages seek the reassurance that their parents understand what's happening around them. They want to know how it will impact them and, often, what caused it so they can do things differently and get a different outcome.
All things that parents also want to give them.
But we inherently can’t predict or prevent Black Swans. But we can lay the foundation for our children to navigate what happens by fostering confidence in themselves and their perspective.
Listen. And Let Them Process.
Resilience and self-confidence come from experience and action - and working through scenarios to understand them. You don’t need to have the answers to reassure them, but let your kids thoroughly talk through their concerns. Let them explore what they would do in a scenario, don't teach or insert your real-world experience. Just listening and giving your attention shows confidence in their ability finding solutions when needed.
Model Compassion.
When discussing events, resist judgment. Human nature tends to want to judge as a means of defense, to see how this wouldn't have happened to us because we want to believe we would have done something differently. Look to flip this and instead model empathy if, for no other reason than when your child experiences their black swan's events, it will hopefully mitigate some of the self-judgment and shame, both toxic and distinctly unproductive emotions.
History & Biographies.
The history of humanity is our ability to individually and collectively navigate black swans. And this is where stories have the power to prepare kids for the inherent uncertainty of life - they connect us to what these events and journeys.
Have thoughts, ideas, or tactics on this topic? I'd love to share them with The LongRange community: takethelongrange@gmail.com
Till next week!
Reva
The Parent 5:
The Must Read/Listen/Watch: On Careers, Job Readiness, Mental Wellness, and Financial Literacy: Policy Overview.
AI Policy Overview.
How universities and learning institutions adapt their AI policies to be more integrated.2. Closing the Post Secondary System Gaps:
From the challenges of transferring to a four-year college from a community college to barriers and a lack of information regarding postsecondary options, One of the most significant challenges of the U.S. postsecondary education system is how fragmented the student experience is. This is an exciting initiative by Carnegie to help address this.
3. A Must Listen This Week.
"The Men - and Boys Are Not Alright" from “The Ezra Klein Show”.
4. More Americans Are Skipping College.
What first looked like a pandemic blip has turned into a crisis. Nationwide, undergraduate college enrollment dropped 8 percent from 2019 to 2022, with declines even after returning to in-person classes.
5. Mental Wellness & Financial Literacy Are The Foundation For The Future of Work.
As jobs become more demanding and uncertain and the pace of changes continues relentlessly - managing stress and maintaining mental health will be critical for our children, and we know it’s already an issue they are at scale struggling with. Equally, as the economy becomes more complex, unequal, and precarious, managing money effectively will be essential for all pay ranges and roles.