Debbie Phelps: Positive Press for Single Parents Everywhere

Thursday August 21, 2008

I frequently remind my clients, and the single moms and dads who come into our forum, that children do, in fact, pay attention to the sacrifices you're making for them, and they do pick up strategies for building success into their lives based on the example they see in you. It may not always feel that way in the midst of your everyday responsibilities, but it's true.

Take Debbie Phelps, for example. I'm pleased to see that much of the press coverage celebrating Michael Phelps' Olympic success has included such positive acolytes for his mom, Debbie. In case you didn't know, she has been a single mom, raising three kids, since she and her husband divorced in the early nineties. This isn't just the story of a dedicated swim parent who got up early day after day, year after year, to make sure her son attended pre-dawn practices; or a mom who made financial sacrifices to see that her children had every opportunity to fulfill their dreams.

It's true that those elements are present. But I suspect that Michael's success started long before he began to break national records for his age category as a young swimmer. I think it had a lot to do with being raised by a mom who pursued her own dreams, and who showed her kids a real-life example of how hard work and dedication really do pay off. See, according to the New York Times article Phelps’s Mother Recalls Helping Her Son Find Gold-Medal Focus, Debbie was going to school for her master's degree in administration at the time when she and Michael's father separated. Surely it wasn't easy, on top of everything else, to add her own classroom hours and homework to the mix, but she did it. And it paid off! This week, in addition to celebrating Michael's success, she gets to enjoy the fulfillment of her own dream as she returns to Windsor Mill Middle School, in Baltimore County, Maryland, where she is the principal.

How About You? What dreams are you pursuing? What do your kids see in you, today, that will help them achieve success in the years ahead? Take moment to think about how the sacrifices and tough decisions you're making today are laying down a powerful example of commitment and dedication for your kids to follow.

If this post was helpful to you: