Main description:

Whether you're a young adult who is stalled on the journey to independence--or a concerned parent still sharing the family nest--this compassionate book is for you. Providing a fresh perspective on the causes of failure to launch, the expert authors present a 10-step plan that helps grown kids and parents work together to achieve liftoff. Learn why brain-based executive skills such as planning, organization, and time management are so important to success, and what you can do to strengthen them. You get downloadable practical tools for figuring out what areas to target, building skills, identifying a desired career path, and making a customized action plan. Vivid stories of other families navigating the same challenges (including father and son Richard and Colin Guare) reveal what kind of parental support is productive--and when to let go.

Contents:

Prologue: How I Got Stalled
Introduction: The Stepping Stones to Independence
Step 1. Assess the Young Adult's Skills for Independence: The Executive in the Brain
Step 2. Build a Foundation for Moving Forward: Motivation, Readiness, Respect, and Support
Step 3. Identify a Realistic Direction: The Young Adult's Interests and Aptitudes
Step 4. Plan How to Help--and Where Not To: Parents' Executive Skills and Respect for Boundaries
Step 5. Set a Goal: Pull Everything Together and Evaluate Goodness of Fit
Step 6. Make It Official: Use SMART Goals to Plan the Steps and Evaluate Progress
Step 7. Make It Easier: Anticipate Problems and Intervene to Get Things Done
Step 8. Get Creative to Tackle Specific Weaknesses
Step 9. Seek Extra Help If You're Still Stalled
Step 10. Learn from Your Success
Epilogue
Appendix: Getting Help with Independent Living
Resources