The Term 'Lawnmower Parents' Was Just Coined, And They're So Much Worse Than Helicopter Parents
Lawnmower parents are a thing now and I'm 100% not here for it.
As I was scrolling through Facebook a few days ago, procrastinating my preparation for the first day of school, some random article came across my feed. At first, I kept scrolling, but eventually, I backtracked because a certain phrase in the headline caught my attention.
The phrase? Lawnmower parent.
I'm sure we have all heard the term helicopter parent to define a parent that constantly tracks their child's every move. They always want to know what their child is doing, what they are thinking and even what they are dreaming about. Parents may do this because they either have nothing better to do or simply are massive control freaks and find that their children are the easiest outlets for this behavior.
But lawnmower parents take it to a whole new level.
Lawnmower parents are defined as parents that go to extreme lengths to protect their children from facing any sort of adversity or obstacle. They may do this by either steering their kids towards a different, easier path or by simply handling the obstacle for them.
Here's a perfect example.
When I was in high school, I did theater, and as anybody knows, with theater comes drama. When you put a bunch of moody teenagers with enormous egos into a theater competing for all of the same roles, there is bound to be trouble.
Each season, after many hours of auditions and callbacks, cast lists were posted, and, as you might expect, many were disappointed. Everyone went into auditions vying for a certain role and believing wholeheartedly that they could do that role better than anyone else, and if they didn't end up getting the role it felt like the end of the world.
After that disappointment, it was only natural for people to want to know why. Why they weren't picked, what they could have done better and why they were placed in the role that they were. But sometimes, instead of the teen going in by themselves to have a mature conversation with the director so they could address these questions, the parents took over.
I swear, if casting did not work in some of my peers' favor, you could bet your bottom dollar that their parent would be either marching into the director's office the next morning or sending a VERY strongly worded email expressing their disdain, and in extreme instances, some parents even went above the director's head and went straight to the principal.
This was probably the worst thing these parents could have done. Their child not only lost the opportunity to learn how to properly handle not only disappointment but also confrontation. Chances are that someday their child will either not get the job they want or be beaten out for a promotion, and now they will have lost at least one opportunity to practice dealing with this sort of situation. As they say, practice makes perfect, so the more practice their children have dealing with confrontation, the easier it will become.
Therefore, I believe that lawnmower parents are leaps and bounds more dangerous than helicopter parents. A helicopter parent is nothing more than an annoyance, but a lawnmower parent prevents their child from learning how to properly deal with adversity.
I, luckily, have two parents that are neither helicopter parents nor lawnmower parents, so don't consider this article a diss to them. Consider this article merely a PSA for any future or current parent that may think that dealing with their child's issues for them is a good idea. Do me and your child a favor and just ignore those instincts. You'll thank me later.
