Parents

What are some obstacles in parenting my child?

Parenting creatively talented youngsters can be a unique challenge. Their enhanced abilities directly relate to high potential across a variety of disciplines, but those same abilities also present a variety of obstacles. One of the key goals of the CLEOS mission is to address a number of these obstacles, including the following:

Multipotentiality

What do you do when they can do anything?

A key issue for many bright people is the pressure they feel to make successful career choices, since they so often hear that they have the ability to do anything in life. At CLEOS, our purpose is not to tell our students that they can do anything...we are interested, however, in providing them with guidance and information on what they may enjoy doing and what other similar creative people have found enjoyment doing.

Financial Concerns and Family Support

"You can’t make any money doing that!"

"Why can’t you be an accountant like Uncle Ed?"

At CLEOS, students are free to focus on their interests and the activities in which they find "flow." They often find that there are a number of career options that they had not previously considered, and that careers driven by creative endeavors can likely lead to happiness and success later in life.

Unclear Career Paths

What do you do if they don’t want to be an accountant?

What if their path doesn’t fit with traditional gender roles or societal expectations for bright people?

Creativity and related career choices do not often have a set path between school and work. Whereas lawyers, teachers, nurses, and others have a clear road to follow in pursuit of a degree and employment, individuals pursuing more artistic or creative fields often do not have such a luxury. As such, students at CLEOS are able to discuss career possibilities and paths during their individual mentoring sessions and in collaborations with the rest of the group.