Hyper-parenting has many pitfalls. Overprotected and overpraised children may develop an inflated sense of entitlement.
I was serious about ballet for a long time, but my mom got me into tap and jazz and modern and hip-hop, and I was one of those over-lessoned children.
All we can do when we think of kids today is think of more hours of school, earlier age at the computer, and curfews. Who would want to grow up in that world?
At six years old, our son had friends who played soccer from 4 P.M. to 7 P.M., Monday through Friday. A six-year-old practicing as much as a Division I athlete.
This whole generation of parents - I'm guilty of it too - does too much for their kids.
If we carry on filling up the calendar, we keep on pushing the athlete, we shorten the athletes longevity. The risk is to shorten a career that could have lasted 10 years because the athlete is burnt out.
What motivates people to be late?... Some people are drawn to the adrenaline rush of that last-minute sprint to the finish line. Others receive an ego boost from over-scheduling and filling each moment with an activity.
When I see these kids 6 years old with a private coach, and at 7, they have a fitness coach, I'm like, 'Aw, come on.' At 12, it's for sure they will lose all the interest in tennis because they do not interact with other kids.
When I played, sometimes we would have one game in a week; now there are no free moments, no time, not even for family.
I think that technology - computers and smart phones and 24-hour availability - often leaves me, and others I know, feeling blank and depressed at the end of a day. I also believe that hyped expectations for raising children leaves many women and men feeling as if their days are a blur of carpools and play-groups and tutors.
We are living in a time where we just don't have enough time. People are rushed. They're over worked, over scheduled. Not enough resources. ...But the thing that I want people to understand in this campaign is that families can make small manageable changes in their lives that can have pretty significant impacts.
Tiger parenting is all about raising independent, creative, courageous kids. In America today, there's a dangerous tendency to romanticize creativity in a way that may undermine it.
It's very hypocritical to constantly say, 'We want to keep our kids close,' then send them home with so much homework that family time becomes nonexistent.
I wish we could get back to those days, just let kids go and play and enjoy themselves on the streets instead of at academies too young.
In the case of the classic Western helicopter parent, it starts with Baby Einstein and reward charts for toilet training, and it never really ends, which is why colleges have to devote so many resources to teaching parents how to leave their kids alone.
Children don't just play any more - they're far too busy learning to fence and taking extra French classes. In the end, you're actually doing more damage to your children by trying to hot-house them. It's far better to remain a calm parent.
Remember that the problem with hyper-parenting isn't that it's bad for children; it's that it's bad for parents.
I do a lot of planning and plotting. That's my greatest weakness. If I'm not terribly careful, I'll plan to a point where it could come out cut and dried.
My kids are exhausted every day, and I keep them that way. It's gym, ice, homework. They're too tired to get in trouble.
When it comes to extracurricular activities, many children are getting too much of a good thing.
When I have meetings scheduled so tight that I can't go to the loo, that's where I draw the line!
When moms and dads put their kids in acting class, good luck. Because you're just filling them with stuff they don't need yet.
It would be so nice to have the luxury just to laze. So nice not to have to always get up and get dressed for some occasion. Always having to move from here to there, where everything is scheduled and even having lunch with my kids on their Easter break has to be slotted in. Maybe one day...
