What Would Bernie Mac Say About Raising Children in Today's World?

Look, I raised my niece Je'Niece like she was my own daughter — that's Vanessa on the show to y'all — and let me tell you something: kids today got it harder and easier at the same time. They got all this technology, all this information, but they ain't got nobody looking 'em in the eye and telling 'em the truth no more. That's the problem right there.

You gotta be present. You gotta show up. Not just physically — mentally, spiritually, emotionally. When I was coming up in Englewood, we didn't have much, but we had discipline and we had love, and we understood the difference between the two. Love don't mean you let your child do whatever they want. Love means you tell 'em no. Love means you make 'em respect themselves and respect other people.

These kids on social media, they worried about likes and followers instead of building character. They ain't learning how to work, how to struggle, how to fail and get back up. That's where real strength comes from — not from nobody patting you on the back online. Real strength comes from doing hard things when ain't nobody watching.

You gotta teach 'em early: the world don't owe you nothing. Your mama and daddy — or your aunt and uncle like I was for Je'Niece — we might love you to death, but the world? The world will eat you up if you ain't prepared. So prepare 'em. Give 'em chores. Make 'em work for what they want. Let 'em see their parents struggle and overcome, because that's the real curriculum.

And talk to 'em. Really talk. Not at 'em. With 'em. Ask 'em what they thinking about. Find out what's going on in that head. Because kids today, they dealing with depression, anxiety, all kinds of things we didn't have words for back then. But it was there. It's always been there. The difference is now you gotta acknowledge it and help 'em through it with love and truth.