My Take on Janell Hoffman’s 16 Rules of Cell Phone Ownership.

So Janell Hofmann bought her son a phone. But, ownership comes with rules. My initial reaction is that if she has to include a list of 16 conditions, then perhaps her son isn’t mature enough to make good decisions. But then as I read them, I just thought this woman is a control freak who can’t make up her mind about things and is giving her son son conflicting advice.

Here’s her list of the rules and my thoughts:

1. It is my phone. I bought it. I pay for it. I am loaning it to you. Aren’t I the greatest? - Ok, we get it, you want to be appreciated when you give your kid a gift.
2. I will always know the password. - Easy fix, don’t password protect the phone. Why would it need to be locked anyway? As you’ll see below, he’s not going to use it enough to have anything worth hiding. 
3. If it rings, answer it. It is a phone. Say hello, use your manners. Do not ever ignore a phone call if the screen reads “Mom” or “Dad”. Not ever. – Ok, I like this one. Basic manners, but hopefully at this point in his life he already knows how to answer a phone by saying hello. Has he never seen a phone before this? 
4. Hand the phone to one of your parents promptly at 7:30pm every school night & every weekend night at 9:00pm. It will be shut off for the night and turned on again at 7:30am. If you would not make a call to someone’s land line, wherein their parents may answer first, then do not call or text. Listen to those instincts and respect other families like we would like to be respected. - Another logical request. I don’t think kids need to have their phone in bed. 
5. It does not go to school with you. Have a conversation with the people you text in person. It’s a life skill. - Most schools have a policy prohibiting usage during the day; my kids can’t use their at school, but it’s nice for them to have it when coordinating rides and other after school events.
6. If it falls into the toilet, smashes on the ground, or vanishes into thin air, you are responsible for the replacement costs or repairs. - Get insurance and buy him an Otter Box. It’ll be cheaper than replacing or repairing. He’s a kid, there’s a higher probability he’ll drop it in the toilet or on the ground.  
7. Do not use this technology to lie, fool, or deceive another human being. Do not involve yourself in conversations that are hurtful to others. Be a good friend first or stay the hell out of the crossfire. - Again, good advice. If he’s got the right character, this shouldn’t be an issue anyway.
8-9. Do not text, email, or say anything through this device you would not say in person.  - Again, good advice, but this is just repeating rule #7. This is where I started thinking this woman just likes to hear herself talk and really enjoys making lists of rules. 
10. No porn. - Yea, good luck with that. 
11. Turn it off, silence it, put it away in public. Especially in a restaurant, at the movies, or while speaking with another human being. You are not a rude person; do not allow the iPhone to change that. - Again, good advice.
12. Do not send or receive pictures of your private parts or anyone else’s private parts. Don’t laugh. Someday you will be tempted to do this despite your high intelligence. It is risky and could ruin your teenage/college/adult life. It is always a bad idea. Cyberspace is vast and more powerful than you. And it is hard to make anything of this magnitude disappear — including a bad reputation. - This is probably the best advice (besides not using using it at the movies) as this can have some serious consequences. I hammered this point home with my two boys as well. 
13. Don’t take a zillion pictures and videos. There is no need to document everything. Live your experiences. They will be stored in your memory for eternity. - Now this one I have serious issue with. Photography is a great creative outlet. I say take a zillion pictures, soak it up and get creative with them. Just be smart with what you share.
14. Leave your phone home sometimes and feel safe and secure in that decision. It is not alive or an extension of you. Learn to live without it. Be bigger and more powerful than FOMO — fear of missing out. - Then why have the phone for a kid? I got my kids their phone so they could be in touch with us first – for anything. I get pissed when their phone is off and or they forget it. It’s a safety and security thing for me. 
15. Download music that is new or classic or different than the millions of your peers that listen to the same exact stuff. Your generation has access to music like never before in history. Take advantage of that gift. Expand your horizons. - Ok, decent advice. Be sure to teach him how to do it legally though and teach him the boundaries of the iTunes account if he has access. 
16. Play a game with words or puzzles or brain teasers every now and then. - Online or offline? Plenty of options for this to happen on the phone, not sure what you’re referring to here.
17. Keep your eyes up. See the world happening around you. Stare out a window. Listen to the birds. Take a walk. Talk to a stranger. Wonder without googling. - All this strict guidance and you’re encouraging him to talk to a stranger? And what if he decides to talk to a stranger during one of those outings where you told him to leave his phone home? Don’t agree with this at all. Stay away from strangers, there are plenty of nut jobs out there. Stay away from nut jobs is my rule. 
18. You will mess up. I will take away your phone. We will sit down and talk about it. We will start over again. You & I, we are always learning. I am on your team. We are in this together. – This kid is going to be terrified to even turn this thing on at this point. Between it being at home during the day, turned off at night, being left home, turned off while he’s out in public and only listening to music and playing games, he would have been better off just getting an iPod touch. 

Just my opinion after two years of my teenager boys owning their phones without any incident. A simple conversation about my expectations was all it took…

What do you think?