Thrive Parenting

How can we change behavior in our teens that we don't like? In truth, we can only change ourselves, but as parents, it's our responsibility to teach our children.

The first step to college and career readiness is self-knowledge. Loren Kelly teaches parents and teens how to identify strengths and use those to identify possible career paths. 

Links referred to in the episode:

• ONET Website - www.mynextmove.com - This is a free website provided by the government that has an online assessment, labor market information (wage, demand, etc.), and education/training information on each career.
• Work Values Assessment - https://www.123test.com/workvalues-motivation/ - This website is free and helps young people identify which of 14 work values they desire most. Loren loves this one for self-awareness.
• Truity Personality Test - https://www.truity.com/test/type-finder-personality-test-new - Truity has several versions of the Myers-Briggs personality assessment. This particular one is free and still provides some great career perspective. 
• Loren's website and free guides for parents - https://lorenkellycoaching.com - Front and center on the homepage are two links to free guides for parents. One is for a roadmap that outlines the five steps to college and career planning that she mentioned today and the other helps parents uncover intrinsic motivation within their students.
• Informational Interview Guide - http://eepurl.com/gkvpw1 - This is Loren's free informational interview guide that helps students and parents navigate a low-prep, high-impact career planning activity! Follow these easy steps to collect great information from a professional in a field of interest.

Almost everyone feels some anxiety about going back to school, but you can help your teen reduce stress and feel confident.

It can be so easy to act like a child by yelling, blaming others or playing the victim. But owning our emotions creates powerful parenting. Emotional adulthood might be the most powerful tool for getting along with other people-- especially our teens. Simply put, emotional adulthood means taking responsibility for your own thoughts and feelings rather than blaming other people. Emotional adults don't get offended easily (or at all!) and they recognize that when people hurt us they usually act out of ignorance, not cruelty.

It sounds so basic, but once you start thinking about emotional adulthood, you'll recognize many situations where adults act like emotional children-- throwing tantrums, getting offended at small slights and blaming others for their feelings. 

On the flip side, we can't expect full emotional adulthood from our teens. But we can teach emotional adulthood by modeling it ourselves. 

When we taught our parenting masterclass, we often found ourselves saying, "this is our very best tip-- if you can apply this one concept it will change your life..." We compiled those very best tips into one podcast. This is the good stuff.

Your teen has unlimited potential. Help them see the best in themselves with these mind expanding ideas.

There are so many ways to navigate the school systems and you can find a way that works for your teen. Summer is a great time to come up with solutions to ensure a happier school year.

Useful links:

video YOU CAN LEARN ANYTHING
https://www.khanacademy.org
https://www.duolingo.com

Justin Prince motivates audiences all over the world and runs a $300 million dollar company, but his role as a husband and father takes priority over everything else. We loved Justin's ideas on making technology your slave (and not the other way around), creating strong relationships and reaching goals.

Justin provided a $10 Modere coupon for our listeners if you'd like to try their products. We especially like the chocolate protein powder.

$10 OFF MODERE PRODUCTS

Almost every time goes through a time when they feel like they don't have friends. Parent can help teens thrive or cause needless drama...

This week we're talking to twenty-three year old TedX speaker, Megan Gallagher. As a teen, Megan suffered from debilitating anxiety and panic attacks. She's now turned her pain to her purpose as a speaker to youth groups. Megan's story is especially interesting to us because of her incredible parents who stayed calm, kept communication open and found solutions. We love Megan's story and we think you will too. 

You can find Megan through these links:

https://www.meganwgallagher.com/

https://www.instagram.com/meganwgallagher/

m.youtube.com/watch?v=HwvG6KLsDtQ

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCx9zIHAvUchVFaYRmUidZqg

In honor of Father's Day, two of our kids discuss what makes a great dad (hint: chocolate chip cookies help a lot). Stefan, 25, just finished his first year at Harvard Law. Mary, 15, just finished her first year of high school. Both agree that it's really about loving your kids.