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A recent Slate article reveals a growing pattern: Gen Z workers aren’t quitting over money—they’re quitting over feedback. What is meant to be a routine correction at work is said to feel like a personal attack.

But here’s the twist: this didn’t start in the office. It actually started at home, when small corrections turned into shutdowns, and no one helped them build the muscle to hear hard things.

(I know, trigger warning for us parents.)

🌱 This is Future-Ready Parents—where we turn parenting worries into small, practical wins that build confident, tech-savvy kids (and calm, capable parents).

🔍 WHAT TO EXPECT TODAY

Today we’re digging into feedback resilience—why so many kids get defensive or collapse under correction. The tool that complements today’s linked news article will hopefully give you a 3-step script to make feedback feel safe and useful. It’s meant to turn meltdowns into “practice reps” for future growth.

🧭 WHY THIS MATTERS

It’s easy to assume kids will just grow into feedback skills. If they experience enough school assignments, group projects, and after-school coaches, they’ll figure out how to take criticism, right?

Bu, brain science disagrees.

Teen brains react to parental criticism like pain. MRI studies show that during ages 10–16, negative feedback activates the same regions as physical injury—the anterior insula, amygdala, and pain-processing centers. (source)

This likely explains the slammed doors over homework tone. Or, the complete shutdown when you ask for a simple do-over.

Without intentional practice, kids don’t get better at receiving feedback. They get better at avoiding it.

That gap shows up years later—at work. Where Gen Z employees are quitting over mild corrections.

The boss that’s asking for an innocent “…mind revisiting this?” is received as if it’s a public humiliation.

The takeaway is that this generation might have missed an opportunity for emotional training.

And that’s something we can start repairing now with our own kids using low-stakes actions that teach kids how to hear hard things, regroup, and try again.

🛠️ THE TOOL: The 3-Step “Redraft Rule”

The Redraft Rule gives them a safe way to try again—without shame, shutdown, or power struggles.

Here’s how it works:

1. Catch the Tension Moment
Your kid rushes a chore and mumbles “whatever” when you ask about a missed assignment. Tries a halfway apology.

Ok, that’s where we have to stop right then-and-there. nNot with blame, but with an invitation.

2. Offer a Redo Prompt
Now, we have to pick one of these approaches below. But, say it with NO sarcasm.

• “Want to try that again like you actually mean it?”

• “Let’s run that back like you’re talking to a future boss.”

• “Want a redo? No pressure—just a second shot.”

3. Name the Effort, Not the Outcome
When they give it another go—even if it’s still a bit rough—say something like:

• “That’s more like it. It’s the trying again that counts.”

• “Now that sounded like someone owning their tone.”

Using this tool now makes real-world correction less terrifying later. It builds the muscle your kid will need when feedback isn’t coming from you—but from a manager who doesn’t care how it lands because it’s their job.

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BEFORE YOU GO…

Every time your kid takes a second shot instead of shutting down, they’re getting stronger. And you’re not just parenting, you’re training someone who can handle feedback without falling apart.

Perhaps its the educator in me, but I this is a huge life skill they’ll need now and tomorrow.

Until next time,
James Brauer
Founder, Future-Ready Parents