How To Help Your Teen Have A Good Academic Year

To have a good year, it’s gonna be important to have ongoing conversations with our kids. I think our primary job as parents is to help our teens build on their strengths, learn to think realistically about their challenges and grow the resilience required to work through stress as it comes. These conversations are generally uncomfortable…

3 Tips for a Successful Summer

As another school year ends and summer break begins how are you feeling? I’m looking forward to some family vacations we have planned but a little stressed about how we’ll all respond to the lack of routine and structure (and heat). Some of us are relieved that summer is finally here. We welcome a reprieve…

5 Tips To Help Your Teen Develop More Empathy

I’m sometimes asked if Gen Z is lacking empathy relative to their predecessors. Actually, sometimes I’m not even asked, it’s just assumed that they are. My response is that I think these kids are incredibly empathetic. At least, I think they have an immense capacity for caring about others and the world. They want to…

How To Respond When Things Go Wrong

Teens are famous for making dumb and impulsive decisions. They predictably exhibit emotional intensity that defies logic and context. We as parents typically get the brunt of this. Whether we’re cleaning up a mess they made in the community or at school or dealing with a verbal or physical onslaught at home, our options are limited in the…