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Month: June 2026

24 Jun 2026

The Benefits of Boredom for Kids

Summer break is here. Routines disappear, structure shifts, and for many families, technology becomes the easiest way to fill the day.

When it isn’t an option, that’s when you might hear those familiar words: “I’m bored.”

Without it, our instinct is often to make suggestions or figure out something for our kids to do. Truth be told I did suggest vacuuming 🙂

Sometimes the hardest part of our child’s boredom isn’t their discomfort. It’s our discomfort.

I realized recently that when my son lost his technology privileges for two weeks, his first response was, “What am I going to do now?”

If I’m being honest, his boredom was uncomfortable for me. It was distracting and annoying. It would have been much easier to solve the problem for him. Then I would have gotten some much-needed peace and quiet.

But I didn’t step in.

After a few days, something shifted.

He started finding things to do. He got creative. He even began playing with the younger kids on our street and teaching them how to play baseball. None of that would have happened if I had rushed in to solve his boredom.

That experience reminded me that boredom isn’t something we always need to solve.

If we can sit with our own discomfort long enough to step back, our children often discover they never needed us to fix it. They just needed space to figure it out themselves.

This is what I know: Sometimes the greatest gift we can give our kids isn’t another solution. It’s the chance to discover what they’re capable of.

Until next time…

17 Jun 2026

Courage Isn’t the Absence of Nervousness

After my presentation, I invited a Grade 3 student to come up and answer two questions.

He was nervous, but he raised his hand anyway and joined me.

Afterward, he shared something powerful. He said learned that it’s possible to feel nervous and still be brave and calm.

That moment stayed with me.

What he discovered is something many children – and adults – are still learning:

Being nervous doesn’t have to stop you.

What courage really looks like

We often think courage comes before stepping into something uncomfortable.

But it’s actually found in the moment you raise your hand, speak up, or try something new while your heart is racing and your stomach is full of butterflies.

That’s when you learn something powerful: courage isn’t the absence of nervousness. It’s feeling nervous and choosing to move forward anyway.

And when you do, everything changes.

This is what I know: Nervousness doesn’t get the final say. Just ask the student in grade 3.

Until next time…

3 Jun 2026

What drives choices? Emotions or Character?

Every parent wants their child – and themselves – to make choices they are proud of and understand what drives choices.

Most choices aren’t made with calm thinking. They’re made in emotions.

A child blurts something hurtful when they’re upset.
A parent snaps after a long, exhausting day.
A sibling argument escalates over something small.

Understanding what drives choices

Emotional choices are based on how you feel in the moment.

A child can say, “I’m frustrated,” and still slam a door.
A parent can say, “I’m overwhelmed,” and still raise their voice.

That’s because emotional awareness doesn’t always change what happens next.

That’s where character comes in.

Character helps you pause long enough to ask: Is this how I want to show up right now?

This is why I created the Choice Making Formula. It helps both kids and parents move from emotional reactions to character-based choices.

Character in everyday moments

For example, a child feels embarrassed after being corrected in front of others and wants to disappear or push back

Character in everyday moments

Emotion says: Get angry. Say something back. Shut down.
Character says: I don’t like how that felt, but I want to respond in a way I can feel good about later.

Or a parent comes home after a long exhausting day and is immediately met with noise and arguing.

Emotion says: Yell. Shut it down fast.
Character says: I’m overwhelmed, but I don’t want to speak from that place.

It creates awareness in the moment when reactions usually take over.

Character doesn’t erase big emotions. It gives them direction.

This is what I know: It’s not about getting rid of emotion. It’s about making a character-based choice in the middle of emotion, so your children learn to do the same.

Until next time…