Listen to your kids. Pay
attention to what they want to do, what they have an aptitude for and most
importantly, what they love to do.

KEN JEONG, Actor, Calabasas

Support them and allow them to find their own confidence in their choices (hobbies, extracurricular, social scene, etc.) It could be really easy to get caught up in the “shoulds” and “have-to’s,” but it’s so critical to take a step back and encourage them to take the lead in defining who they are and what they want to do. 

MIKE KNOBLOCH, Universal Pictures, President of Film Music and Publishing, Studio City

Stay away from musicians. 

RUPERT PARKES,
Musician/Composer, Sherman Oaks

Seeing through the eyes of your child and never being judgmental is a great way to connect with them. Some of our greatest joys are building forts, playing the guitar, creating recipes and making up our own board game rules. 

DAR ROLLINS, International Creative
Management, Co-head of talent, Encino

You can never start too early to teach your kids how to respect others. Hello, thank-you and goodbyes go a long way. 

BEN SAMEK, Endemol Shine
North America, COO, Encino

Raise the child you have-not the child you wish you had. I wish my son wanted to go to tap class and music lessons. Instead I drive him all over the Valley for baseball, soccer and basketball. Your child is who they are the day they are born; just guide them to be kind, fair people, but let them live their dream. 

MARISSA JARET WINOKUR, Actress/Singer, Toluca Lake

Kids must know that their parents have their backs and love them unconditionally. Give them hugs. Say the words, “I love you.”  

TJ JACKSON, Musician, Calabasas

Lead by example.

EDWARD JAMES OLMOS, Actor/Director, Encino

I make sure my kids know it’s okay to have different kinds of feelings (connected to whatever their experiences are) and that we want to know about their experiences and various emotional states. If they are sad, then we make sure they know it’s okay to be sad. If they are mad, it’s okay to be mad. 

KEVIN WEAVER, Atlantic Records, President of Film & TV, Encino