Anonymous
Post 01/27/2026 12:44     Subject: what is wrong with modern kids and no motivation to shovel?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Viewing neighborhood kids as owing you cheap or free labor is pretty bizarre. I remember this when I was a teen, I didn't want to babysit for this one neighbor because the kids were absolute terrors and their dog was aggressive but they'd grumble when I declined.


Why is there this assumption people would be paying kids like they're cheap labor? No one said they were going to pay a kid $15 to shovel heavy ass ice snow for an hour. The thread is asking simply why kids aren't out there hustling for jobs Ike they used to, and that they could have probably earned a lot if they took advantage.

If someone is offering to pay low for the job, your kids could, I dunno, LEARN TO NEGOTIATE BACK FOR BETTER COMPENSATION.

No wonder kids these days are so emotionally and socially stunted. Helicopter parenting has ruined them. They can't learn basic life skills like taking advantage of golden opportunities to make money and negotiate compensation rates for themselves. Heck, I would have paid them $100 bucks for a job they could have done in about 30 minutes I bet.


Then you should have a sign out offering $100.
Why haven't you learned the basic life skill of advertising for help?

Imagine expecting people to knock on doors to ask if the resident is offering any shovel work that pays at least $100 -- you'd probably throw a fit at the presumption.
Anonymous
Post 01/27/2026 12:37     Subject: what is wrong with modern kids and no motivation to shovel?
Anonymous wrote:Viewing neighborhood kids as owing you cheap or free labor is pretty bizarre. I remember this when I was a teen, I didn't want to babysit for this one neighbor because the kids were absolute terrors and their dog was aggressive but they'd grumble when I declined.


As a teen I hated babysitting and always declined, but I did a ton of work for different youth groups plus I made money petsitting. Choosing the kind of work you do is smart, not spoiled, and kids who need money already have regular gigs that are not dependent on random weather events.

As always, though, people accept work they dislike if it pays well enough. It's on the would-be employer to advertise the pay.
Anonymous
Post 01/27/2026 12:12     Subject: what is wrong with modern kids and no motivation to shovel?
My kid shoveled a lot for neighbors on Sunday and Monday. He’s shoveling one more house today. Sunday was pleasant shoveling. Monday was not, and presumably today as well.

But now he needs to do more work including for a statistics class so he doesn’t grow up to be as dumb as the OP who thinks their experiences are universal.
Anonymous
Post 01/27/2026 12:00     Subject: what is wrong with modern kids and no motivation to shovel?
Anonymous wrote:I detest people like you. YOU were the bad lot, OP, to your elder's generation. Every civilization since the birth of sedentary agriculture has stupidly whined about their teens.

And FYI, I had bands of roving teens in my neighborhood looking to earn cash for shoveling. I have one teen who also did this, before going to college, and now one teen who doesn't. I am certainly not forcing my non-shoveling teen to shovel. She is a great kid who helps out in other way, and she earns money teaching beginner violin year-round.

So go away.



+1 I had two sets of teens knock on my door asking for shoveling jobs. I have my own teen who shovels so I didn’t need the help-he has his own fixed neighbors who ask him for help each year and does the same few houses. It’s tough out there this year with the ice. My teen can only do 2-3 houses per day on his own and his muscles are sore.
Anonymous
Post 01/27/2026 11:55     Subject: what is wrong with modern kids and no motivation to shovel?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Viewing neighborhood kids as owing you cheap or free labor is pretty bizarre. I remember this when I was a teen, I didn't want to babysit for this one neighbor because the kids were absolute terrors and their dog was aggressive but they'd grumble when I declined.


Why is there this assumption people would be paying kids like they're cheap labor? No one said they were going to pay a kid $15 to shovel heavy ass ice snow for an hour. The thread is asking simply why kids aren't out there hustling for jobs Ike they used to, and that they could have probably earned a lot if they took advantage.

If someone is offering to pay low for the job, your kids could, I dunno, LEARN TO NEGOTIATE BACK FOR BETTER COMPENSATION.
No wonder kids these days are so emotionally and socially stunted. Helicopter parenting has ruined them. They can't learn basic life skills like taking advantage of golden opportunities to make money and negotiate compensation rates for themselves. Heck, I would have paid them $100 bucks for a job they could have done in about 30 minutes I bet.

You seem to have a problem with generalizations. These are neighborhood kids shoveling for neighbors. They’re not trying to extract every bit of profit out of people who have seen them since they were babies.

There was someone on the tween thread saying that teens should be shoveling voluntarily for elderly people on fixed income unless the teen desperately needed the money. I don’t agree with that either (it’s backbreaking work and if the elderly person is so poor they can cash out of their house and move to a smaller apartment), but there are good reasons that teens aren’t requiring 80$ an hour from a neighbor even though an adult might try to do so for the same job.
Anonymous
Post 01/27/2026 11:51     Subject: what is wrong with modern kids and no motivation to shovel?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Viewing neighborhood kids as owing you cheap or free labor is pretty bizarre. I remember this when I was a teen, I didn't want to babysit for this one neighbor because the kids were absolute terrors and their dog was aggressive but they'd grumble when I declined.


Why is there this assumption people would be paying kids like they're cheap labor? No one said they were going to pay a kid $15 to shovel heavy ass ice snow for an hour. The thread is asking simply why kids aren't out there hustling for jobs Ike they used to, and that they could have probably earned a lot if they took advantage.

If someone is offering to pay low for the job, your kids could, I dunno, LEARN TO NEGOTIATE BACK FOR BETTER COMPENSATION.

No wonder kids these days are so emotionally and socially stunted. Helicopter parenting has ruined them. They can't learn basic life skills like taking advantage of golden opportunities to make money and negotiate compensation rates for themselves. Heck, I would have paid them $100 bucks for a job they could have done in about 30 minutes I bet.


You seem far more emotionally stunted than the 50 kids I saw on my neighborhood page asking for shoveling jobs.
Anonymous
Post 01/27/2026 11:38     Subject: what is wrong with modern kids and no motivation to shovel?
Anonymous wrote:Viewing neighborhood kids as owing you cheap or free labor is pretty bizarre. I remember this when I was a teen, I didn't want to babysit for this one neighbor because the kids were absolute terrors and their dog was aggressive but they'd grumble when I declined.


Why is there this assumption people would be paying kids like they're cheap labor? No one said they were going to pay a kid $15 to shovel heavy ass ice snow for an hour. The thread is asking simply why kids aren't out there hustling for jobs Ike they used to, and that they could have probably earned a lot if they took advantage.

If someone is offering to pay low for the job, your kids could, I dunno, LEARN TO NEGOTIATE BACK FOR BETTER COMPENSATION.

No wonder kids these days are so emotionally and socially stunted. Helicopter parenting has ruined them. They can't learn basic life skills like taking advantage of golden opportunities to make money and negotiate compensation rates for themselves. Heck, I would have paid them $100 bucks for a job they could have done in about 30 minutes I bet.
Anonymous
Post 01/27/2026 11:30     Subject: what is wrong with modern kids and no motivation to shovel?
My kids made bank and are thrilled.
Anonymous
Post 01/27/2026 11:30     Subject: what is wrong with modern kids and no motivation to shovel?
A bunch of kids have been raking in the cash on Capitol Hill. I’m not sure where OP lives, but maybe they grow them different out there.
Anonymous
Post 01/27/2026 11:27     Subject: what is wrong with modern kids and no motivation to shovel?
Anonymous wrote:People around here are generally not hardy. Lots of type As that didn’t grow up in colder climates. Online life.i actually enjoyed shoveling and sledding with my son the last few days. I took a wonderful walk this morning- love the quiet and snow.

People also don’t have correct snow gear and layers. UMC thinks it’s beneath them to do manual labor. They pass this onto their kids.


All of this.
Anonymous
Post 01/27/2026 11:25     Subject: what is wrong with modern kids and no motivation to shovel?
It's the parents.
The same parents who think their little darling deserves to be paid like a professional nanny for babysitting but complain about actually paying a nanny a proper rate.

Spoiled.
Anonymous
Post 01/27/2026 11:24     Subject: what is wrong with modern kids and no motivation to shovel?
I had two neighbor boys shoveling people out.
Mine aren't old enough yet, but I'll send them out to help.

But to answer your question op it's the parents.
Anonymous
Post 01/27/2026 11:03     Subject: Re:what is wrong with modern kids and no motivation to shovel?
Anonymous wrote:We have teens in our neighborhood who helped for money, they could not do all of it themselves but it was a great help $20 for 1 hour of work.

They are not earning $200 ... that's insane.

Our neighbors help each other... were you out there yesterday helping your neighbors?

Why not, what has happened to your generation where you can't help a neighbor?


Mix of neighbors helping neighbors.
Some coordination and sharing of equipment.
Teens with shovels, most charging, but seemed helpful for those who need it.
Anonymous
Post 01/27/2026 11:03     Subject: what is wrong with modern kids and no motivation to shovel?
Viewing neighborhood kids as owing you cheap or free labor is pretty bizarre. I remember this when I was a teen, I didn't want to babysit for this one neighbor because the kids were absolute terrors and their dog was aggressive but they'd grumble when I declined.
Anonymous
Post 01/27/2026 10:59     Subject: Re:what is wrong with modern kids and no motivation to shovel?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:My twelve year old and his best friend have made $500 over the last two days. But, they haven’t been going door to door. They have been using the neighborhood list serv. There are lots of kids posting on there. Maybe you just aren’t seeing them because they are using new technology.


Nope, our listserv is desperate for people to shovel. Literally zero kids offering to shovel in our area.


Why do you want children to work for you? Hire adult workers like a normal person. Plenty of landscape companies make their winter money in snow removal.


Because they want to pay half of what an adult would charge and then ironically complain about how lazy the kids are these days.


Yes to this! I'm the Spotsylvania VA poster who had tons of teens and parents of teens posting on the community listserve looking for shoveling work.

This one neighbor offered to pay $12 and I ironically by the end of the day she was still on the board asking for shoveling help.

Another neighbor offered $100 and his shoveling job was booked by a teen so quick...literally within seconds of posting the neighbor had a teen booked for the job.