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Esther Wojcicki has one simple acronym that guides her parenting secrets: TRICK.
She also admits that “parents constantly ask [her] for advice,” curious about how she “escaped being a disciplinarian and instead found a way to guide students who are genuinely passionate about the work they’re doing.”
From L to R: Susan, Anne and Janet Wojcicki.Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty
“I respected their individuality from the beginning,” she adds in the book. “My theory was that the most important years were zero to five and I was going to teach them as much as I could early on. What I wanted more than anything was tomake them first into independent childrenand then into empowered, independent adults.”
Inan interview withFORTUNEahead of her book release, Esther opined that “trust” is the most difficult TRICK principle for employers to embrace, with kindness coming in a close second “because we don’t have a word in the English language that expresses happiness when other people succeed.”
“I can understand why [trust is] hard because there are people out there who don’t do what they’re supposed to do,” she said. “But I would suggest explainingthe culture of the company and talkingabout how you’re giving people more trust and respect, and how you’re expecting people to honor that. If there are violations, then you do have to change the rules. But I would say that most people work really hard.”
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During a speech atFORTUNE‘s Most Powerful Women dinnerlast month, Esther insisted that “kids model after their parents” and recommends putting the phone down at dinnertime.
And of giving “freedom, respect and trust” to Anne, 45, Janet, 49, and Susan, 50, she confidently proclaimed about her goal of empowering her daughters from the get-go, “I knew what I was doing worked.”
How to Raise Successful People: Simple Lessons for Radical Resultsis available now onamazon.com.
source: people.com
