Ever since I first read Hunt, Gather, Parent by award-winning journalist Michaleen Doucleff, I’ve felt the urge to change the conversation. So much parenting advice feels cursory and performative. What if we could move past the quick tips model, explore the real challenges and triumphs of raising kids, and what’s behind our ideas about what it means to be a good parent?

In many parts of the world, parents are raising families using traditional methods they learn from other parents, not from books or gurus. While we’re feeling pressure to optimize our interactions, they trust the wisdom they’ve learned from experience. With Michaeleen’s help, we’re going to start some real talk about what we can learn from these time-honored practices, and how to get back the self-confidence we’ve lost.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

1. How parents train their kids to be unhelpful, and the simple ways to start undoing that programming.
2. Why a sense of purpose might be more important for little ones than feeling happy. 
3. Why we struggle to find parenting role models in our lives.
4. How to do less without feeling guilty.   

And much more! 

As always, thanks for listening. Head over to Facebook, where you can join my free group Mastermind Parenting Community. We post tips and tools and do pop-up Live conversations where I do extra teaching and coaching to support you in helping your strong-willed children so that they can FEEL better and DO better. If you enjoyed this episode and think that others could benefit from listening, please share it!

Get all the links, resources, and transcripts here: https://mastermindparenting.com/podcast-254

About Randi Rubenstein

Randi Rubenstein helps parents with a strong-willed kiddo become a happier family and enjoy the simple things again like bike rides and beach vacays.

She’s the founder of Mastermind Parenting, host of the Mastermind Parenting podcast, and author of The Parent Gap. Randi works with parents across the U.S.

At Mastermind Parenting, we believe every human deserves to have a family that gets along.

Randi’s Web and Social Links

• Website: https://mastermindparenting.com/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mastermindparenting
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mastermind_parenting/

About Michaleen Doucleff:

Michaleen Doucleff is an award-winning global health correspondent and the author of Hunt, Gather, Parent: What Ancient Cultures Can Teach Us About the Lost Art of Raising Happy, Helpful Little Humans. https://michaeleendoucleff.com/hunt-gather-parent/ 

Resources Discussed/Links

Save your seat for our monthly FREE 60-minute coaching session: https://mastermindparenting.com/monthly

Our 12-week Basics Bootcamp program is now available as a 100% online self-study course! https://mastermindparenting.com/minimasters/

Live assessment: https://mastermindparenting.com/live-assessment/

Moms are in a no-win situation when it comes to how we spend our time. When we’re choosing between activities with kiddos or time focused on our grown-up priorities, we get a guilt trip no matter what we choose. We’re told to make everyone else happy at the expense of our own happiness and health, even though it’s not physically possible.

How do we get out of this trap? By refusing to accept the guilt, and turning the tension caused by failing to meet these impossible standards into an opportunity for growth. 

In this episode, you’ll learn:

1. The competing social pressures that force us into mom guilt (and why they’re all BS)
2. How to embrace the strain of mom guilt and reframe it as a chance to expand your capacity. 
3. Why having healthy boundaries around your time is a win for both you and your kids.

And much more! 

As always, thanks for listening. Head over to Facebook, where you can join my free group Mastermind Parenting Community. We post tips and tools and do pop-up Live conversations where I do extra teaching and coaching to support you in helping your strong-willed children so that they can FEEL better and DO better. If you enjoyed this episode and think that others could benefit from listening, please share it!

Get all the links, resources, and transcripts here: https://mastermindparenting.com/podcast-253 

About Randi Rubenstein

Randi Rubenstein helps parents with a strong-willed kiddo become a happier family and enjoy the simple things again like bike rides and beach vacays.

She’s the founder of Mastermind Parenting, host of the Mastermind Parenting podcast, and author of The Parent Gap. Randi works with parents across the U.S.

At Mastermind Parenting, we believe every human deserves to have a family that gets along.

Randi’s Web and Social Links

• Website: https://mastermindparenting.com/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mastermindparenting
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mastermind_parenting/

Resources Discussed/Links

Save your seat for our monthly FREE 60-minute coaching session: https://mastermindparenting.com/monthly

Our 12-week Basics Bootcamp program is now available as a 100% online self-study course! https://mastermindparenting.com/minimasters/

Live assessment: https://mastermindparenting.com/live-assessment/

The toddler years are a source of joy and anxiety for a lot of first-time parents. We want to encourage our newly-mobile little ones as they explore their surroundings, but we also want to keep them safe. And, we’re in charge of connecting them to a world that has schedules and time limits, which just aren’t intuitive to a tiny, curious mind. Who wouldn’t be stressed out by all that?

Empathy is the key to managing those competing priorities, for our little ones AND ourselves. Trying to see the world from their perspective can help us stay patient when they’re testing boundaries. Giving ourselves kindness when we make mistakes will help the whole thing feel less overwhelming. Here are my most important tips for building that connections, and some resources to help you put it into practice.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

1. How you can start cultivating empathy for your toddler’s experience when they’re still an infant. 
2. The big shift in thinking at the heart of every progressive parenting method.
3. Why humility is so much more beneficial for your kiddos than perfection.
4. My most recommended resources for parents at any stage of their journey.

And much more! 

As always, thanks for listening. Head over to Facebook, where you can join my free group Mastermind Parenting Community. We post tips and tools and do pop-up Live conversations where I do extra teaching and coaching to support you in helping your strong-willed children so that they can FEEL better and DO better. If you enjoyed this episode and think that others could benefit from listening, please share it!

Get all the links, resources, and transcripts here: https://mastermindparenting.com/podcast-252

About Randi Rubenstein

Randi Rubenstein helps parents with a strong-willed kiddo become a happier family and enjoy the simple things again like bike rides and beach vacays.

She’s the founder of Mastermind Parenting, host of the Mastermind Parenting podcast, and author of The Parent Gap. Randi works with parents across the U.S.

At Mastermind Parenting, we believe every human deserves to have a family that gets along.

Randi’s Web and Social Links

• Website: https://mastermindparenting.com/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mastermindparenting
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mastermind_parenting/

Resources Discussed/Links

The best parenting book I’ve ever read is Hunt, Gather, Parent: What Ancient Cultures Can Teach Us About the Lost Art of Raising Happy, Helpful Little Humans. https://michaeleendoucleff.com/hunt-gather-parent/  

My favorite podcast episode to share features the author of Hunt Gather Parent, Michaeleen Doucleff. https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/mastermind-parenting-podcast/id1362773053?i=1000614983893 

The must-watch documentary Becoming You is on Apple TV https://tv.apple.com/us/show/becoming-you/umc.cmc.2eln6544k8wo99s3vrdl5amwf 

Check out my website and scroll to the bottom to sign up for weekly resources sent by email straight to you! https://mastermindparenting.com/ 

Milk Connections Lactation Consulting is at https://milkconnections.com/  

Save your seat for our monthly FREE 60-minute coaching session: https://mastermindparenting.com/monthly

Our 12-week Basics Bootcamp program is now available as a 100% online self-study course! https://mastermindparenting.com/minimasters/

Live assessment: https://mastermindparenting.com/live-assessment/

My strong-willed son has taught me so much about dealing with anxiety. Parenting him helped me learn how much of the behavior kiddos struggle with is motivated by the scary signals they’re getting from their bodies. Knowing him as an adult has helped me recognize my own anxious tendencies, and how to manage them with loving curiosity. This time I’m sharing some of the things I’ve learned, with a big assist from our beloved Judy Blume. 

In this episode, you’ll learn:

1. How anxiety can motivate strong-willed behaviors, like fighting with siblings or challenging authority.
2. The messages anxiety sends about the state of your mind and body (and how to start paying attention).
3. Why the hardest anxiety to recognize might be your own.

And much more! 

As always, thanks for listening. Head over to Facebook, where you can join my free group Mastermind Parenting Community. We post tips and tools and do pop-up Live conversations where I do extra teaching and coaching to support you in helping your strong-willed children so that they can FEEL better and DO better. If you enjoyed this episode and think that others could benefit from listening, please share it!

Get all the links, resources, and transcripts here: https://mastermindparenting.com/podcast-251 

About Randi Rubenstein

Randi Rubenstein helps parents with a strong-willed kiddo become a happier family and enjoy the simple things again like bike rides and beach vacays.

She’s the founder of Mastermind Parenting, host of the Mastermind Parenting podcast, and author of The Parent Gap. Randi works with parents across the U.S.

At Mastermind Parenting, we believe every human deserves to have a family that gets along.

Randi’s Web and Social Links

• Website: https://mastermindparenting.com/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mastermindparenting
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mastermind_parenting/

Resources Discussed/Links

Save your seat for our monthly FREE 60-minute coaching session: https://mastermindparenting.com/monthly

Our 12-week Basics Bootcamp program is now available as a 100% online self-study course! https://mastermindparenting.com/minimasters/

Live assessment: https://mastermindparenting.com/live-assessment/

When siblings fight, it pushes all the mama bear instinct buttons. We can’t help but jump in and try to stop it. But our natural impulse - to angrily confront the one who “should know better” - can set up our squabbling sibs for even more friction down the road.

On last month’s Masterminding Monthly call, I got the opportunity to coach a mom struggling with how to respond to a classic sibling dynamic. Younger kiddo worships the older one, and wants to be around them all the time. Meanwhile, older sib doesn’t want a chatty shadow following them everywhere. The drama between your kids might have a different shape, but the tools I teach in this episode will help you begin to defuse the situation without contributing to the tension between them.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

3. Why it’s so common for older kids to feel resentful of their younger siblings.
7. Where to focus your attention so you don’t reinforce that competitive framing.
11. When to address behavior that crosses the safety line, and when to let your kiddos work things out themselves.

And much more! 

As always, thanks for listening. Head over to Facebook, where you can join my free group Mastermind Parenting Community. We post tips and tools and do pop-up Live conversations where I do extra teaching and coaching to support you in helping your strong-willed children so that they can FEEL better and DO better. If you enjoyed this episode and think that others could benefit from listening, please share it!

Get all the links, resources, and transcripts here: https://mastermindparenting.com/podcast-250 

About Randi Rubenstein

Randi Rubenstein helps parents with a strong-willed kiddo become a happier family and enjoy the simple things again like bike rides and beach vacays.

She’s the founder of Mastermind Parenting, host of the Mastermind Parenting podcast, and author of The Parent Gap. Randi works with parents across the U.S.

At Mastermind Parenting, we believe every human deserves to have a family that gets along.

Randi’s Web and Social Links

• Website: https://mastermindparenting.com/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mastermindparenting
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mastermind_parenting/

Resources Discussed/Links

https://mastermindparenting.com/monthly

https://mastermindparenting.com/minimasters/

Live assessment: https://mastermindparenting.com/live-assessment/

Sometimes a Mastermind parent struggles with an issue that’s so damn relatable, we can’t help but share it. If you’ve lived through the middle school years, you’ve probably seen your kid struggle with changing social dynamics, and rejection by kids who used to be their friends. It’s not only heartbreaking to watch, but our instinct to protect often only makes things worse. The key to helping them through this emotionally challenging stage of life is helping them face it on their terms.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• How to cultivate the trusting environment your child needs to feel comfortable with sharing when peers are mistreating them.
• Why your kiddo might have some sympathy for the person bullying them, and why you should, too.
• Physical activities for combating stress and helping kids open up.
• The similarities between the embodied experience of physical and emotional pain.

And much more! 

As always, thanks for listening. Head over to Facebook, where you can join my free group Mastermind Parenting Community. We post tips and tools and do pop-up Live conversations where I do extra teaching and coaching to support you in helping your strong-willed children so that they can FEEL better and DO better. If you enjoyed this episode and think that others could benefit from listening, please share it!

Get all the links, resources, and transcripts here: https://mastermindparenting.com/podcast-249

About Randi Rubenstein

Randi Rubenstein helps parents with a strong-willed kiddo become a happier family and enjoy the simple things again, like bike rides and beach vacays.

She’s the founder of Mastermind Parenting, host of the Mastermind Parenting podcast, and author of The Parent Gap. Randi works with parents across the U.S.

At Mastermind Parenting, we believe every human deserves to have a family that gets along.

Randi’s Web and Social Links

• Website: https://mastermindparenting.com/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mastermindparenting
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mastermind_parenting/

Resources Discussed/Links

Live assessment: https://mastermindparenting.com/live-assessment/

Have you ever been the parent whose kiddo was bossing other kids around during a playdate? I have, and so has the mom who was on a recent Mastermind call. She’s here to share a story I call “Goldfishgate,” that’s so funny and so relatable. You’ll recognize how it feels to watch your kid push their friends around, and how Mastermind skills can help you recognize and address underlying causes of challenging behavior.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

1. What can make a normally reasonable kid turn into a little tyrant when they’re playing with their friends.

2. Why micromanaging and redirection might minimize the fallout, but won’t help them grow out of the behavior.

3. When and how to address the underlying causes, and help your kiddo recognize when they’re starting to cross the line.

And much more! 

As always, thanks for listening. Head over to Facebook, where you can join my free group Mastermind Parenting Community. We post tips and tools and do pop-up Live conversations where I do extra teaching and coaching to support you in helping your strong-willed children so that they can FEEL better and DO better. If you enjoyed this episode and think that others could benefit from listening, please share it!

Get all the links, resources, and transcripts here: https://mastermindparenting.com/podcast-248

About Randi Rubenstein

Randi Rubenstein helps parents with a strong-willed kiddo become a happier family and enjoy the simple things again like bike rides and beach vacays.

She’s the founder of Mastermind Parenting, host of the Mastermind Parenting podcast, and author of The Parent Gap. Randi works with parents across the U.S.

At Mastermind Parenting, we believe every human deserves to have a family that gets along.

Randi’s Web and Social Links

• Website: https://mastermindparenting.com/

• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mastermindparenting

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mastermind_parenting/

Resources Discussed/Links

Live assessment: https://mastermindparenting.com/live-assessment/

Parenting can be embarrassing! It’s natural to feel some shame when your potty-trained kiddo smells like a full diaper, or when they’re walking around in public with a finger up their nose. But your best tool for dealing with those embarrassing kid behaviors is putting the shame aside, and creating a home where your kids know they can talk about anything without judgment. 

In this episode, you’ll learn:

1. How to build trust with your kids by holding space for them to share their most embarrassing moments.

2. The opportunity that embarrassing habits provide for developing that sharing relationship. 

3. How our instinct to protect kids from teasing can interfere with helping them manage unwanted behaviors.

4. The most important thing you can say when a kiddo shares something they’re embarrassed about.

And much more! 

As always, thanks for listening. Head over to Facebook, where you can join my free group Mastermind Parenting Community. We post tips and tools and do pop-up Live conversations where I do extra teaching and coaching to support you in helping your strong-willed children so that they can FEEL better and DO better. If you enjoyed this episode and think that others could benefit from listening, please share it!

Get all the links, resources, and transcripts here: https://mastermindparenting.com/podcast-247

About Randi Rubenstein

Randi Rubenstein helps parents with a strong-willed kiddo become a happier family and enjoy the simple things again like bike rides and beach vacays.

She’s the founder of Mastermind Parenting, host of the Mastermind Parenting podcast, and author of The Parent Gap. Randi works with parents across the U.S.

At Mastermind Parenting, we believe every human deserves to have a family that gets along.

Randi’s Web and Social Links

• Website: https://mastermindparenting.com/

• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mastermindparenting

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mastermind_parenting/

Resources Discussed/Links

Sign up for our Masterminding Monthly series at https://mastermindparenting.com/monthly 

Mastermind Parenting free support session: https://mastermindparenting.com/live-assessment/

Apply to work with Randi at https://mastermindparenting.com/basics-bootcamp/

When our kids are upset about things we see as minor, even the kindest parent can find their patience wearing thin. When they’re melting down because the hairstyle you spent time on isn’t perfect, or when they suddenly refuse to wear the clothes they really wanted at the store, it’s hard not to get frustrated. If you can resist the urge to take it personally, and wait until the storm has passed, you’ll have a much better chance of diagnosing what’s actually triggering those reactions.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

1. How easy it is to miss the ways perfectionism and sensitivity can act as stand-ins for other anxieties our kids are experiencing.

2. Why you shouldn’t try to correct strong-willed behavior in the moment, and how to address it when it will actually be productive.

3. What a huge difference it makes when we show curiosity and compassion about the motivations of challenging behavior.

And much more! 

As always, thanks for listening. Head over to Facebook, where you can join my free group Mastermind Parenting Community. We post tips and tools and do pop-up Live conversations where I do extra teaching and coaching to support you in helping your strong-willed children so that they can FEEL better and DO better. If you enjoyed this episode and think that others could benefit from listening, please share it!

Get all the links, resources, and transcripts here: https://mastermindparenting.com/podcast-246 

About Randi Rubenstein

Randi Rubenstein helps parents with a strong-willed kiddo become a happier family and enjoy the simple things again like bike rides and beach vacays.

She’s the founder of Mastermind Parenting, host of the Mastermind Parenting podcast, and author of The Parent Gap. Randi works with parents across the U.S.

At Mastermind Parenting, we believe every human deserves to have a family that gets along.

Randi’s Web and Social Links

• Website: https://mastermindparenting.com/

• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mastermindparenting

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mastermind_parenting/

Resources Discussed/Links

Apply to work with Randi at https://mastermindparenting.com/basics-bootcamp/

Every kiddo sometimes has a rough night and needs to crawl into bed with a parent. But what do you do when a rough night is every night for nine years? If you’re anything like a mom I’ve been coaching, you get caught up in self-doubt, and you blame yourself for not doing the thing. But a lot of the time, what’s getting in your way is a part of your personality that’s trying to protect you from hurt and fear. What if you could take a step back and think about your responses from a place of understanding rather than judgment?

In this episode, you’ll learn:

1. How self-criticism can short-circuit the learning process, and hold us back from the change we know we want.

2. Why our yearning to not pass on our own trauma to our kids can lead us to give too much. 

3. The possibilities that open up when we explore our inner patterns with compassion and curiosity.

And much more! 

As always, thanks for listening. Head over to Facebook, where you can join my free group Mastermind Parenting Community. We post tips and tools and do pop-up Live conversations where I do extra teaching and coaching to support you in helping your strong-willed children so that they can FEEL better and DO better. If you enjoyed this episode and think that others could benefit from listening, please share it!

Get all the links, resources, and transcripts here: https://mastermindparenting.com/podcast-245

About Randi Rubenstein

Randi Rubenstein helps parents with a strong-willed kiddo become a happier family and enjoy the simple things again like bike rides and beach vacays.

She’s the founder of Mastermind Parenting, host of the Mastermind Parenting podcast, and author of The Parent Gap. Randi works with parents across the U.S.

At Mastermind Parenting, we believe every human deserves to have a family that gets along.

Randi’s Web and Social Links

• Website: https://mastermindparenting.com/

• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mastermindparenting

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mastermind_parenting/

Resources Discussed/Links

Apply to work with Randi at https://mastermindparenting.com/basics-bootcamp/ 

No Bad Parts: Healing Trauma and Restoring Wholeness with the Internal Family Systems Model, by Dick Schwartz https://ifs-institute.com/store/419