Parents should ask kids when they're ready to talk about consent, but push forward even if they say no. Showing persistence signals that consent is serious and non-negotiable, not something kids can avoid or dismiss.
So what we have to recognize is when is a good time for them, right? And I learned this the hard way because I didn't pick the right time all the time. But asking them, hey, I want to talk to you about consent. When's a good time? And if they go, no time's a good time, you're not talking to me about that, then here's your response. Uh, I get you might not want to, but we're going to talk about it because that's my responsibility. So we're going to talk about it. I'd rather do it on your time. Now, if they say, I don't care, I'm not going to give you a time, all right, then we're going to talk now. And by the way, you could have a kid doing this. I'm not listening in high school. What does it tell you? They're hearing you or they would do that. So you still have the conversation because they know you're not giving up on them. They're hearing. They can tell this is important. They're just trying to fight back on you, but they know you're not going to give up on them. That's more important than a parent going, "Yeah, well, I can't push this on them," right? And then the kid hears, "Oh, they give up quick, don't they?" All right, I know the technique now to get out of this, right? Versus I'm going to stay strong. You're too important to me to give up on.
