Anyone who’s spent time around Gen Z — or watched news stories about them — has heard the stereotypes: They are more anxious, fragile, and coddled than previous generations. As a developmental psychologist at Harvard, I study the experience of growing up across generations and I’ve heard every variation on this theme. To be sure,…
We know that raising emotionally intelligent kids sets them up for future success. The challenge is that many of us were never taught those skills ourselves. Growing up, many of us heard phrases like “stop crying,” “calm down,” or “be good.” Over time, those messages taught us to suppress feelings rather than understand them. As…
If you don’t make boosting your child’s self-esteem “one of your top priorities” as a parent, you could jeopardize their future success and happiness, says mental performance coach Cindra Kamphoff. “Parents need to be more aware of the confidence crisis in America today, and they need to be really deliberate about increasing the confidence of…
For years, bedtime was the most stressful part of my day. No matter how early we started or how carefully I planned, evenings always felt chaotic. I’ve heard the same story from many of the parents I’ve worked with, and it’s understandable. Bedtime is a major emotional transition that most of us were never taught…
When a child is upset, most parents reach for the same question instinctively: “What’s wrong?” It’s well-intentioned and it comes from care. But after years of teaching conscious parenting and studying over 200 kids, I’ve seen how often that question does the opposite of what parents hope. Instead of opening children up, it can shut…
I spent seven years studying high-achieving students, interviewing hundreds of them and their families. Many young people I met described monitoring grades, rankings, and résumés as if they were constantly evaluating their worth. In some families, achievement took on an outsized role, leading some children to wonder whether their parents’ love was tied to how…
When I think back on my childhood, my happiest memories aren’t tied to things I owned. They’re about the freedom of growing up in a small Ohio town where everyone knew your name and kids ran in packs. The neighborhood park was our meeting place. A few bikes tossed in a friend’s front yard signaled…
Most parents know the frustration of dealing with a child’s unexpected public tantrum. But parents are often too quick to call out their child’s negative behavior — chastising them for that unnecessary meltdown or even telling them to “cheer up” when they seem sad — while ignoring the underlying emotions behind those actions, according to…
Neal Mohan, the CEO of YouTube speaks during a panel for the Summit for Democracy on March 30, 2023 in Washington, DC. Anna Moneymaker | Getty Images YouTube’s CEO Neal Mohan is the latest in a line of tech bosses who have admitted to limiting their children’s social media use, as the harms of being…
Before your child even steps out the door every day, their emotional baseline for the day is already set — not by color-coded routines, but by how safe and connected they feel in your presence. As a conscious parenting researcher, I’ve studied more than 200 kids, and I’m a mother myself. I’ve found that the…
