Barbara Corcoran Shares Her Best Parenting Advice: Let Your Kids Struggle

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Nothing like a little tough love. 

Barbara Corcoran is not only one heck of a businesswoman, she's one heck of a mom!  In the latest episode of Business Unusual, the Shark Tank investor gives her most trusted parenting advice, explaining why having your children learn to overcome struggle is one of the most important lessons any kid can get. 

"When my son and daughter were born, I prayed every day that they would find a struggle that they would have in life. Why? Because I learned all of my lessons by struggling and finding solutions to the problems I encountered, but of course if you're a kid that has parents that have the means to protect you, take care of you, introduce you to everything, make sure your position in life is secure. They don't hit a lot of struggle," she explained. "And that's a problem. And guess what? God heard my prayers. When both Tommy and Kate were born by first grade I knew they were dyslexic, and they were gonna struggle for the rest of their life learning to read and right. And that they really did, but they persisted and found through their persisting that they developed their own self-confidence. And that's exactly what I was hoping for. I was less worried about them reading than I was worried about them building self-confidence."

Barbara also believes children should know exactly what goes into earning a dollar. "I always want my kids to believe that they can work and provide for themselves. So I'm just a believer in kids having jobs early," she explained. "My daughter Kate is 13 but she's been working at a dog spa grooming animals for the last three years. I can't begin to tell you how much self-confidence she gets from her little job much more than she ever will find in a classroom." Barbara added: "Here's the skinny. If you're an affluent parent, it makes you feel all the time that you should do the most for your kids, and I get it, I'm one of those too. But I believe you should let kids fail."

If you have a question to ask Barbara on a future OnDeck-presented episode of Business Unusual on iHeartRadio, tweet your inquiry to @BarbaraCorcoran and stay tuned to see if the entrepreneur offers you some sound advice! 

To hear more of Barbara's parenting advice, check out the full Business Unusual episode below. 

Are you looking into business financing? If so, your simple business financing starts here: https://www.ondeck.com/barbara. To speak with an OnDeck Loan Advisors, call 888-269-4246. Or, if you're ready to apply for a business loan, click here to get started!

Business Unusual with Barbara Corcoran on iHeartRadio gives listeners an inside look at the entrepreneur's decades-long career, including her first-person stories of triumphs and pitfalls. As you listen to her new podcast, you'll learn a wave of advice that has helped a new generation of young entrepreneurs achieve their goals. As one of the judges on ABC's Shark Tank, Corcoran knows a thing or two about the inner workings. After all, she had 22 jobs by the age of 23, built a $5 billion business with a $1,000 loan and conquered the New York real estate world.

Photo: Katherine Tyler for iHeartRadio


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