For those to whom that sort of thing matters, this is time for college entrance strategy. My teenager made the transition a couple of years ago, and a niece a couple of years before that.
I'm going to assume your son is an academic overachiever, from what I recall. Then there is the rest of the package. Whatever he is passionate about (besides girls), he should be thinking about how to pursue that in a way that gives some concrete evidence of participation. It's like the difference between "I play guitar" vs. "my ensemble performed at such and such venues, and I was invited to play at these other places". Service seems to be a big deal these days for college admission as well, particularly evidence of leadership in service.
So, that's the future looking side. As far as the personal side, as you know, hormones will be on full throttle for about the next 10 years. It doesn't necessarily mean he will be chasing skirts, but it does mean emotional volatility. There will be angst about fitting in or not. There will be feelings of injustice around not getting some things, or not being some things. I was 30 before I got over that sort of crap. And there will be the fact that although he seems like he should be able to reason like an adult, often he won't, in part because his brain is not finished developing yet, and in part because hormones are still clouding judgement.
And, of course there is that bit about wanting to be fully independent, and not wanting to admit they are still attached to parents.
These are all the things I remind myself of when dealing with my teenager. She is a good girl, so I consider myself very fortunate, but I still have to navigate the minefield of a teenager's psyche when talking with her.
