{"id":12798,"date":"2026-05-06T18:34:48","date_gmt":"2026-05-06T18:34:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/influencerswiki.org\/blog\/sting-warns-parents-letting-children-skip-work-is-a-form-of-abuse\/"},"modified":"2026-05-06T18:34:48","modified_gmt":"2026-05-06T18:34:48","slug":"sting-warns-parents-letting-children-skip-work-is-a-form-of-abuse","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/influencerswiki.org\/blog\/sting-warns-parents-letting-children-skip-work-is-a-form-of-abuse\/","title":{"rendered":"Sting Warns Parents: Letting Children Skip Work Is a Form of Abuse"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>When the legendary singer\u2011songwriter Gordon Matthew Thomas Sumner, better known as Sting, appeared on <em>CBS Sunday Morning<\/em> last week, he delivered a message that surprised many viewers: the idea that parents should allow their children to live a life free of work is, in his view, a form of abuse. The 74\u2011year\u2011old, who has earned 17 Grammy Awards and an estimated net worth of $550\u202fmillion, said that he believes a child\u2019s greatest gift is a strong work ethic and that parents should encourage their kids to earn, rather than simply receive, everything they need.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"stings-perspective-on-work-and-parenting\">Sting\u2019s Perspective on Work and Parenting<\/h2>\n<p>Sting\u2019s comments were rooted in his own family experience. He has six children from two marriages, and he insists that each of them has been raised with an \u201cextraordinary work ethic.\u201d He explained that this ethic is not merely a genetic inheritance but also a result of the expectations he set: \u201cWhether it\u2019s the DNA of it or whether I\u2019ve said to them, \u2018Guys, you got to work,\u2019\u201d he told the program. He added that he personally finances their education, provides for their basic needs, and then encourages them to find employment. \u201cI\u2019m spending our money. I\u2019m paying for your education. You\u2019ve got shoes on your feet. Go to work,\u201d he said, framing the advice as an act of kindness and trust.<\/p>\n<p>When asked whether any of his children had complained about the arrangement, Sting replied, \u201cNo \u2026 not to my face, they don\u2019t!\u201d He emphasized that the children\u2019s willingness to work is a sign of their resilience and independence. In his view, allowing a child to live off parental generosity without contributing is a form of emotional neglect that can stunt personal growth.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"the-familys-work-ethic-in-practice\">The Family\u2019s Work Ethic in Practice<\/h2>\n<p>Sting\u2019s children have pursued a variety of careers that reflect the values he instilled. From music and acting to business and philanthropy, each child has taken on roles that require dedication and responsibility. For example, his daughter, Mickey, has followed in his musical footsteps<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"When the legendary singer\u2011songwriter Gordon Matthew Thomas Sumner, better known as Sting, appeared on CBS Sunday Morning last week, he delivered a message that surprised many viewers: the idea that parents should allow their children to live a life free of work is, in his view, a form of abuse. The&#8230;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":3750,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-12798","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/influencerswiki.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12798","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/influencerswiki.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/influencerswiki.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/influencerswiki.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/influencerswiki.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12798"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/influencerswiki.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12798\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/influencerswiki.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3750"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/influencerswiki.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12798"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/influencerswiki.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12798"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/influencerswiki.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12798"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}