Why Do Young People...

I’ve been occasionally blogging here for a short while but who I am and what I have achieved I have never really explained, even in the ‘About Me’ section of this blog.

So, I am going to take a few moments, so sit right there and I’ll tell you the story of who I am and what I have achieved.

My name is Sabian Muhammad. I am a 22 year old award-winning youth advocate, public speaker, presenter, social entrepeneur, Olympic Youth Panelist, school worker and soon-to-be author

That’s the easy explanation anyone can do that, but there is more.

I have worked with young people for the last 7 years, in schools, colleges and youth clubs around the country. My work, at first, was primarily with young people working as a stop-gap between adults in their schools and youth clubs helping them to understand each other. I have always been passionate about helping adults understand the young and find ways to communicate with them. I started in my local youth club at 15 years old helping out with organising activities for young people. I was there for 5 years as a volunteer before I moved on. In the years I was there I had a variety of jobs elsewhere including the role of play worker in a primary school.

But you don’t really need to know all this, you want to know where the light switch moment is, at what point did I begin to start making real waves, and that occurred on 10th July 2009 when I spoke in the House Of Lords.

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On the back of a national campaign backed by O2 called ‘Why Do’, and seeing the numerous issues brought up by parents inspired the creation of this book.

In today’s society we have a vast number of problems to face, the apparent breakdown of family and family values does not help the situation.

The Why Do Q&A website allows adults to ask young people why they do the things they do and after close observation, I noticed there is a huge gap, even a disconnection between parents and children. Things that should be basic for parents to understand have become complicated, clouded problems that further wedge the communications between adults and young people.

I have created this book, ideally to help reconnect adults to their children and what they may be going through. What you get out of this book is very much down to you remembering what it was like to be a child and putting yourself in the shoes of your child or if you do not have a child, in the shoes of the children you may make assumptions about everyday.

So, Why Do parents need a book like this?

On evidence of the questions adults are asking young people on the ‘Why Do?’ website, it would seem that many parents have the same problems dealing with, understanding or communicating with their children, from very young ages.

This doesn’t shine a good light on the depth of the generation gap and points to a possibly irreversible problem, and I believe if parents have a very short and simple resource they can refer to as a guide, they may have a better chance increasing relations with the young people in their lives.

Look out for the release of Part 1 soon!

Full Question:

“Why do you think people with more life experience than most of you should bother themselves with validating your existence? We’ve been there ‘n got the Tee-shirt, apart from a newer (and much poorer) vocabulary what could we possibly have to learn - other than the eternal arrogance of some young people is undiminished? One day you’ll be embarrassed by this.” #Via www.whydo.co.uk

Interesting question. For all the life experience adults undoubtedly have, why are young people in the state they are in? Because adults do not reach out to them, you do not share your life experience with us.

Validating existence, now this is very condescending, I was under the impression that the REASON we exist is because your generation BROUGHT us into existence. The very statement tells me you have no regard for the very beings you have brought on to this earth.

Yes, young people are arrogant, why?

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This is an excerpt from my upcoming short book “Why Do for Parents” which is being developed on the back of my ‘WhyDo’ campaign. It is being designed to help adults understand what their children go through in different areas of life and how it affects what they do - please give any feedback! Enjoy!

In a society where being “perfect” is praised and imperfect despised, raising disabled children was never going to be easy. It is even harder for the disabled child.

Being hearing impaired myself, I have experienced this first-hand; at times it is a feeling of isolation, of frustration at not having the same faculties as everyone else, even a sense of injustice. How we may be perceived by others always is a problem for a disabled child, the fear of reprimand and rejection causes them to retreat into solitude, their own personal world where they can feel safe being themselves.

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The following post is an excerpt from my upcoming ebook “Why Do for Parents” - a short and concise guide, which breaks down the thought processes of young people and helps adults - parents in particular - understand why their children act a particular way and provide them with possible solutions.

Most of these young people are the products of what many media outlets call “broken Britain” - broken homes and dysfunctional families.

No matter what a young person says to an adult about whether they need help or advice from them, it is the duty of adults to provide it anyway. Resistance will always be there.

So what could possibly be the contributor to young people hanging around in gangs, in fact, what are gangs?

The answer could be social neglect, this is more than a generation gap, this is a total disconnection. Adults need to do more to connect with their young. This is not about adults rediscovering their youth, this is about the older generation taking responsibility for the very beings they brought into this world.

Young people are growing up in homes where they barely see their parents, who work 9 to 5/6/7 even 8 in the evening; where, in their schools from a young age they are branded and categorised and have to carry these tags for the rest of their educational years; where, in society they are called delinquents thugs, and anti-social. This is three areas where neglect of young people is occurring and such treatment causes them to form a body within which they feel safe and secure, where there is trust and possibly ‘love’.

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#via www.whydo.co.uk

There are many possible reasons why young girls may want to become glamour models - but a big possible cause is the fact that there is pressure to look a certain way from a young age.

Society has fashioned a world where your success is determined by how you look, where men only go for the “prettiest” women, where women are bombarded with products that will make them look younger for longer, make them lose weight, make them become the “talk of the office”.

In my personal view, women’s insecurities are amplified by the level of scrutiny placed on the celebs and models females follow.

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Every week I will collate the 5 most pressing issues adults have asked on Whydo.co.uk.

Get your questions in at www.whydo.co.uk!

1. Communities

• Why Do young people binge drink
• Why Do young people hang around in groups outside shops

2. Politics

• Why do young people vote liberal rather than conservative?
• Why do young pople not follow politics?

3. Music

• What is the name of the dubstep song on the whydo advert?
• Why do you think young people are so good at discovering new music?

4. Family

• Why do young people fall out with their parents so often?
• Why do young people spend so much time in their bedrooms than with their family?

5. Education

• Why do young people take their education for granted?
• Why do young people not seem keen on getting good grades?

Visit www.WhyDo.co.uk and ask a question now!

Are these questions important to you? Would you like to see these questions answered?

Do you remember when...your close friends became strangers, 

lollipops turned into cigarettes, 

the innocent ones turned into sluts, 

homework goes in the trash, 

soda became vodka, 

kisses turned into sex. 

Remember when getting high meant swinging on the playground? 

When protection meant wearing a helmet? 

When the worst thing you could get from boys/girls were cooties? 

Dads shoulders were the highest place on earth and mom was your hero? 

Your worst enemies were your siblings. 

Race issues were about who ran the fastest, 

the only drug you knew was cough medicine, 

wearing a skirt didn't make you a slut, 

the only thing that hurt you was skinned knees and 

goodbyes only meant until tomorrow?

 And we just couldn't wait to grow up... 
What a change in life!!

Visit www.whydo.co.uk and ask a young person why they do what they do TODAY!

Me in the radio station promoting Why Do! A Long day! One Radio station, 10 interviews! Visit www.whydo.co.uk

Me promoting www.whydo.co.uk with N-Dubz singer Tulisa Contostavlos on regional radios around London