This weekend, The Century Council brought its newly re-designed ‘

As we approach the end of both the year and the decade, here's a countdown of what I think are the most helpful pieces of advice for parents of teenagers. You may be disappointed that certain favourites did not make the list, such as "Give them lots of money so they have nothing to complain about," "Forbid them from having any contact whatsoever with other teenagers," and "Threaten to come to their school at lunchtime and do a five-minute dance outside the cafeteria window unless they behave better." I have a feeling these will serve you better.

10. Do not invest too much energy into making sure that your teen is totally honest with you.

Teenagers lie. Some don't, but most do. Better to understand that there are some things that you cannot trust your teen about and act accordingly.

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