Part Four: FAQs with Anne LaRiviere, Director of Admissions for OPI Living Programs
Anne LaRivere, Director of Admissions at the Optimum Performance Institute
Part Four of my FAQ blog series is a combination of a response to one of the most frequently asked questions I receive as Director of Admissions for OPI Living Programs and a book review to accompany my response.
The question I chose to respond to this month is always asked of me by parents who contact us to learn more about our program and from parents of participants currently in one of our OPI Living Programs.
Question: “Tell me a good book that can help me understand and better deal with my young adult.”
Answer: “How Children Succeed: Grit, Curiosity and the Hidden Power of Character” by Paul Tough (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, $27) on the New York Times’ list of 100 notable books from 2012.
A contributing writer for The New York Times Magazine, Tough maintains that noncognitive skills like self-control and persistence are more essential for success than sheer brainpower. He says we are a country of very privileged children and very poor ones, both deprived of the emotional and intellectual experiences that make for sturdy character.
Reading, “How Children Succeed,” made me wonder if, somehow, Tough sat in on OPI Living therapy sessions where we work with our young adults by walking that fine line that exists between helping them become independent while giving them all the support they need.
His conclusions shared in the book echo the very words that have guided us all these years: Patience, persistence, compassion for self and others.
In her New York Times book review that published this past August, Annie Murphy Paul said, “Tough believes that character is created by encountering and overcoming failure.” Calling his book, “absorbing and important,” she said it explains why “American children from both ends of the socioeconomic spectrum are missing out on these essential experiences. The offspring of affluent parents are insulated from adversity, beginning with their baby-proofed nurseries…to their parentally financed young adulthoods…while poor children face no end of challenges—from inadequate nutrition…to dysfunctional schools.”
In her book review, Paul also said the book, “illuminates the extremes of American childhood: for rich kids, a safety net drawn so tight it’s a harness; for poor kids, almost nothing to break their fall.”
I urge parents to read Tough’s book and share their comments about it below this post. Please also feel free to share other book titles with us that you’ve found helpful and encouraging along the way. Having written materials to review and learn from can be a great addition to a support network developed for parents, participants and mental health professionals.
For more information about our programs and how we begin the admission process, visit our webpage dedicated to the OPI Living Admission Process.
If you would like further information or have questions that you’d like me to answer, please don’t hesitate to leave a comment on this blog post or email me directly at Anne(at)OPILiving(dot)com. You may also fill out our contact form with your inquiry. We’re here to help!