Raising Future-Ready Children

At the supper table in Gweru, seventeen-year-old Kudzai announces that she wants to study Art, Geography and Agriculture and become a landscape designer. Her father’s face falls. “You are clever! You should do sciences and become a doctor. That is where the money is.” The meal ends in silence. Many families will recognise that evening.

Parents across Africa and in the diaspora are anxious about their children’s futures, and with good reason. Youth unemployment is high. Technology, including artificial intelligence, is changing many kinds of work. Climate change is reshaping agriculture and economies. The old formula of “pass exams, get a degree, get a job for life” no longer works for many young people.

Tarusenga Samson writes as a parent, church elder and family life leader who spent more than twenty years in Zimbabwe’s agricultural research sector mentoring young researchers, interns and graduates. With an MSc in Strategic Management, he applies proven strategic thinking to the home: know your purpose, build adaptable skills, scan for opportunities and plan with flexibility. Over 25 chapters, the Chikore family learn these lessons with Mrs Mushonga, a retired headteacher and career guidance counsellor.

Inside you will learn how to:

•       Help your children discover their gifts, interests, strengths and God-given calling

•       Build character, the skill behind every skill, and become a coach rather than a commander

•       Develop the skills the future needs: learning how to learn, problem-solving, communication, digital wisdom and money skills

•       Look beyond “doctor, lawyer, engineer”: choosing subjects, technical and vocational pathways, careers in agriculture and the green economy, and university and scholarships (and how to avoid scams)

•       Grow experience and enterprise through work at home, attachments, volunteering, mentors and youth business

•       Handle failure, change of plans and second chances with resilience

•       Write a Young Person’s Strategic Plan, and bless and release your children well

Each chapter names a common myth, shares what Scripture says, gives a practical future-ready tool and ends with questions, a family exercise and a prayer. Many exercises are designed for parents and children to do together.

“Like arrows in the hands of a warrior are children born in one’s youth” (Psalm 127:4). Arrows are not meant to stay in the quiver. They are shaped, aimed and released. This book will help you shape, aim and release your children well.

Perfect for: Parents and guardians of children from primary school to young adulthood, teenagers and young adults making education and career choices, grandparents and mentors, and church youth leaders, teachers and career guidance counsellors.