Raising a Brat Step 10- Always foot the Bill

If all the prior steps were followed, then Junior can’t keep a job because he is wise in his own eyes, self-absorbed and full of excuses, so go ahead and continue to foot the bill.

He expects you to anyway.

Don’t require Junior to pay for anything.

Gratefulness will be far from his heart. He doesn’t understand the pain of sacrifice or the victory of hard work, so your generosity means NOTHING to him, except a personal right.

AKA: Selfish Brat full grown.

You’ll be left holding the bag for the rest of Junior’s life. Congratulations. You have raised a person to be a child to the end of his days. 

The raising of a brat takes little time or effort while the child is young, but the result will feel like a rock tied around your neck when the child is grown. Grief and disappointment will be the main emotions related to your project.

Intentionally live your days with your kids while they are young. Thoughtless parenting can result in a lifetime of regret.

 Ecclesiastes 4:5, "The fool folds his hands and ruins himself."

Raising a Brat Step 9- Do Your Own Thing

He is a terror to be around, so avoid being around him at all costs. Do your own thing. Have a busy work and social life--Be two ships passing in the night in order to avoid conflict. In fact, avoid conflict at all costs because he is almost grown now and his explosive temper is quite embarrassing.

Stay detached.

He will mirror this behavior and neglect his future family, too. It takes a mature person to be fully present with those in the same room. Teach him by example to text, daydream, and talk on the phone when he should be visiting with others.. Wherever he is, he will want to be somewhere else.

Walk away when it gets hard. Leave discomfort. Relieve any strain or stress.

Constantly seek convenience.

(Character is birthed in anguish and toil, stick-to-itiveness and perseverance.)

Selfishness is your goal, therefore constant comfort and happiness should be the focus.

Proverbs 19:22, "What a man desires is unfailing love;..."

Raising a Brat Step 8- Protect Him Consequences

Mr. King of Excuses needs to be protected from the consequences, since consequences teach life lessons.  As his life crumbles around him because he can’t finish school or keep a job--Cover his expenses. Buffer his surroundings. Don’t let him feel the stretch that comes from real life consequences.

This will keep him self-absorbed and arrogant. The Selfish Brat is made. The final steps simply seal the deal. You have done a thorough job.

The world revolves around him, so he thinks.

Anything that goes wrong is someone else’s fault.

He knows nothing of responsibly.

Or commitment.

Or perseverance.

Or struggle.

Yet he is unaware of this and feels entitled to a privileged, luxurious life with full benefits.

He has no understanding and cannot hear the truth. He believes he has clean hands and a pure heart and is unaware that he lives in darkness.

Ephesians 4:18-20, "They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts. 19 Having lost all sensitivity, they have given themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity, with a continual lust for more."

Step 7- Make Excuses for your Irresponsible Child

By now Junior is so focused on himself he rarely finishes a task or follows through on a project. A good dose of hard work would sooth like a balm on his flimsy soul, so keep him full of reasons why “he can’t.”

He is irresponsible,

So make excuses for him.

“He doesn’t feel well.”

“He is too busy.”

“His teacher is just mean.”

“No one understands him.”

He will become the King of Excuses and therefore will successfully slide through school without learning a blasted thing. He will be wise in his own eyes thinking everyone else a fool.

Train him to think that “commitment” means chains. By all means don’t let him feel the victory of persevering to the end of a project.  Such hard work chisels character into a soul and would defeat this 10-step purpose.

Sticking out a commitment when he has had ENOUGH would bring a sense of self worth! Hide from him the fact that stick-to-itiveness is invigorating and rewarding.

Keep him floating with the wind and he will successfully accomplish NOTHING note worthy in his life.

You are doing a fine job.

Proverbs 12:15, “The way of a fool is right in his own eyes, but a wise man listens to advise.”

Raising a Brat: Step 6- Flatter

You love your child. There's no doubt... but it is obvious that strong character is lacking and there is simply not much to like. So focus on the one thing left—his appearance.

Flatter him.

Make him vain.

Shallow—Self-absorbed—Arrogant

This is sure to ruin him.

This will train him to ONLY see his own wants, needs and desires. Others will be a fleeting thought to him. 

He will believe that the world revolves around his handsome self.

Keep him in the newest and the latest apparel and it will never be enough.

Satisfaction will stay FAR    out    of    r e a c h. 

His lust for beauty will never be satisfied, because only those with deep character recognize true beauty …And deep character is no where near him.

People can barely stand to be around Junior at this point and he suffers jealousy, discontentment and a deep seeded anger that he does not recognize or claim.

He is angry with God.

Good job! We're moving right along.

Proverbs 19:3, “When a man’s folly brings his way to ruin, his heart rages against the Lord.”
Galations 6: 3, "For if anyone thinks he is something, when he is nothing, he deceives himself."

Raising a Brat: Step 5- Pack the Calendar

You are making great progress. Step 5 is super easy!

Over schedule.

Fill the calendar with all of Junior’s activities. Make sure the whole family revolves around his desires. Neglect family get-togethers, family reunions, visiting the grandparents and doing anything that is not stimulating and fun. 

Make sure the calendar is only filled with Junior’s fun and interesting activities. Everyone else is secondary.

Make comfort, happiness and being the “yes” parent top priority.

This will set him up to believe that he is the center of the Universe and that all activities should revolve around his heart’s desire his entire life.

He know nothing of sacrifice or self-control.

Self-absorbed and selfish describe Junior at this point.

Proverbs 14:12 "There is a way that seems right to a man, but it's way leads to death."

Raising a Brat: Step 4- Appease

We are only on Step 4 and Junior is well on his way to the point of No Return.

When he does NOT get his way and starts to embarrass you with his loud disapproval, shut him up by appeasing him.

GIVE HIM WHAT HE WANTS, for Pete’s sake!!

Appeasing him will make him accustomed to getting his own way, which will result in a life of discontentment.

And a discontent soul is a tortured one.

Always wanting for more...

Never Satisfied...

Grasping for what cannot be attained...

Clasping for what is out of reach

Irritable, dissatisfied, miserable, discontent...           

Little does he know that receiving a firm “NO!” is truly what his soul craves.

Hide this secret by APPEASING him. Protect him from the character that a good struggle produces. The easier you try to make his life the more self focused he will be and the LESS you will care to be around him, so NEGLECT him by avoidance.

Keep him shallow, dissatisfied and self-absorbed. He will be a feeble soul always searching. The selfish brat is being made.

Ecclesiastes 2:14, “The wise person has his eyes in his head, but the fool walks in darkness…”

Raising a Brat: Step 3- Inspire a Mooch

Since you can’t seem to make Junior obey regardless of HOW LOUD YOU YELL, go ahead and do all the work around the house. Don’t require anything out of your off spring.

It is simply TOO exhausting to require anything of him, so do it yourself.

This should help to maintain a level of peace at least on the surface for a while.

And this training will also help to destroy his future marriage, because when the romance fades and his bride notices that she is the only one cleaning around the apartment, this behavior will provide an interesting explosion that the happy couple’s neighbors will enjoy over hearing as well.

Good job! You are PLOWING your way to success.

Proverbs 14:23, "All hard work brings a profit, but mere talk leads only to poverty."

Raising a Brat: Step 2- Don’t Follow Through

If you start this tip when Junior is a toddler, you won’t have to do much else to mess the kid up.

So here it is: Give an instruction… then when Junior does NOT obey:

Threaten.

Then instruct again, but LOUDER THIS TIME. When Junior again does not obey.

THREATEN LOUDER.

Keep this cycle going until you are YELLING AT THE TOP OF YOUR LUNGS!!

You are not only accomplishing the task of raising a selfish brat, but you are also providing job security for your doctor, because you will need to see him regularly, for the blood pressure medication your body requires to keep you from exploding from all the HOLLERING.

At this point Junior knows you WILL NOT keep your word, and your doctor knows you WILL keep your appointment.

Good job, you are killing two birds with one stone. Junior is well on his way to the point of no return.

Keep up the good work.

Proverbs 15:5, “The fool despises his father’s instruction, but whoever heeds reproof is prudent.”

Raising a Brat: Step 1- Out of the Blocks

The good new is that you can start when your child is an infant. There’s no need to wait! In fact the earlier you start, the greater your efforts will stick.

Since the first 18 months sets the child’s emotional wiring, you will want to get busy as soon as Junior is born. So let’s get started:

1) First play chaotic hard rock music. The disorder will scramble Junior’s mental wiring and make him a nervous wreck.

2) Then be sure to scream and yell at your spouse. This is a sure way to upset your child’s tummy in a way that will make him a cranky, fussy, whiney child.

3) Set your infant in front of a blaring TV. 

Gastrointestinal upsets and emotional fragility are making their homes in the core of your child’s being.

He will grow into a nervous wreck that becomes self-indulgent... SIMPLY because his emotional state can care for no other but himself. His life’s focus will be to become PAIN FREE emotionally and physically.

You are off to a SMASHING start!

10 Easy Steps to Raising Your Very Own Selfish Brat!

Let’s have some fun in September. Bookstores and libraries hold shelves upon shelves of parenting books. (None of them authored by me.) Advice is cheap.

Everyone has a definite opinion.

But here’s the deal: I have ten kids and EACH IS SO DIFFERENT! 

Photo Credit to Desktoppub

Having kids messes up the rulebooks! Trust me!

I have AMAZING KIDS and I am ridiculously PROUD of mine, but no pat formula works across the board. My husband and I seek the Word and pray through daily decisions concerning each one of ours: young and old.

(And I greatly encourage you to do the same since we only get one chance to raise the incredible kids God gives us.)

So rather than giving you 10 Sure Fire Steps to Raising GREAT KIDS…that might fail you...

I am going to tell you how to mess them up! This is MUCH EASIER to accomplish.

We'll have fun.

I will speak of your “boy” to keep the writing simple, but the steps given should ruin either gender—

No worries.

So join me in September for:

10 Easy Steps to Raising Your Very Own Selfish Brat!