Wanting your parent to be proud of you doesn't end at adulthood. Kris Kluver, in The Dysfunctional Family Office, names this directly. Every next generation member carries a silent burden. I just want Dad or Mom to be proud of me. The burden doesn't disappear with money, with credentials, with marriage, with kids of your own. The healthier path isn't to stop wanting the approval. It's to stop letting the absence of explicit approval define your decisions. Most founders never say the words their adult kids are waiting to hear. Most adult kids don't ask for them directly either. The fix is for someone to break the silence. Asking your parent for the conversation feels harder than living without it, but the second option costs more over time.
Why do I still need my dad's approval even though I'm a grown adult?
From: Ch 3: We're All Crappy Psychics
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