PG-ish

I've come to the conclusion that "grit" is synonymous with being a parent. It requires resilience, perseverance, problem-solving, passion, and intentionality—in other words, parenting takes a ton of grit. Today Angela Duckworth explores a few different facets on the topic of grit, and how our grit as parents can grow over time and pay off in the long run. Watch the full clip here , and for more in...

You don't need me to tell you that parenting can be complex. We know that we have influence, but how do we know what really matters, and how to parent the right way? Today, Yuko Munakata, a faculty member with the UCDavis Center for Mind and Brain, walks us through the science of parenting, and why most advice is wrong—which might actually allow us to breathe a sigh of relief. Watch the full clip...

We tend to make all kinds of resolutions for the new year, and sometimes we're overwhelmed by the number of possible changes we could make. With limited time, energy, and resources, how do we decide what's worth it? Best-selling author Sarah Knight walks us through how to dissect the essential and non-essential elements of life. Basically, getting rid of the nonsense, and bringing more joy into yo...

As we rev our engines this week, stepping into a new year with anticipation and fresh goals, I want to bring you a reminder that it's okay to PAUSE and to give yourself grace in the days and weeks ahead. Today I get to interview the two founders of Pause Meditation, who will talk about ways to incorporate mindful pauses into your day, what the Window of Tolerance is, and why grace is so important....

As 2020 comes to a close, I'm taking a moment to reflect on what this year has taught me about my kids, my parenting, and myself. Although 2020 has been full of challenges, today I'm sharing four lessons I've learned along the way—that hopefully we can carry into the new (and brighter) year. I'd love to know what you think, so join in on the conversation! Subscribe, leave a review, or follow PG-is...

Today is an exciting day for PG-ish—our first real interview episode! I'm chatting with Amanda and Rachel from Grace in the Race, a dynamic duo helping parents put systems and strategies in place to make grace the default feeling at home, rather than chaos and stress. Get in touch with Amanda and Rachel at www.graceintherace.com , or on social media at @grace.in.the.race . I'd love to know what yo...

Do you have a hard time catching your breath between Thanksgiving and Christmas? What if you got to choose how stressful or enjoyable this year's holiday season would be? Brian Mackenzie, a human performance specialist, shares that the journey we're all on provides many opportunities to create habits to keep us either in a stressed state or a relaxed state—we get to choose which path we take. Watc...

Therapist and author Marisa Peer walks us through some ordinary yet useful tools to help with our continued shelter-at-home with our kids. Today's episode gives some new ideas to break up the monotony and to make everyday life fun, but also reminds us that we don't have to be the perfect parent. Watch the full clip here , and for more info about Marisa Peer, here's her website . Check out her book...

Being a vehicle of change doesn't need to be a grandiose effort. This Thanksgiving, so many people are struggling—not just financially, but emotionally as well. Today Tony Robbins reminds us that even when we feel overwhelmed by the need around us, we just need to take small steps toward kindness. Watch the full clip here , and for more info about Tony Robbins, here's his website . Check out his b...

Today's episode with Mel Robbins is all about you. How are you really doing? Right now, you might be just getting by, content with survival. But who wants a life of mediocrity? We don't have to just be fine. We can be fantastic. Watch the full clip here , and for more info about Mel Robbins, here's her website . Check out her book, The 5 Second Rule: Transform your Life, Work, and Confidence with...

I love the no-nonsense approach to parenting that Mel Robbins gives. Our job as parents is not to mold our kids into small versions of ourselves, but rather to teach them to be individuals who understand how to use their voice, values, and heart to interact with the world around them. Watch the full clip here , and for more info about Mel Robbins, here's her website . Check out her book, The 5 Sec...

What kind of parent do you see yourself as? The captain of a ship? A negotiating lawyer? Or even a dictator? Today, marriage and family therapist Susan Stiffelman discusses how genuine connection can make all the difference in building positive behavior in your kids, which helps you become the parent you want to be. Watch the full clip here , and for more info about Susan Stiffelman, here's her we...

Whatever you're feeling today, this episode is sure to help—without the nasty side effects of medication. Max Strom, who has taught on the healing power of the breath for over twenty years, explores why anxiety is on the rise and why much of what we're feeling this year is grief over the lives and routines we had. Through learning how to breathe, you can deal with very real emotions and create a h...

When we're faced with ongoing challenges, it's easy to fall into a cycle of apathy and anger—especially when we don't have an outlet for our emotions. As parents, we get tired of holding everything together, and we can end up taking it out on our kids. Psychologist and author Harriet Lerner gives us a brief, lighthearted snapshot of what can happen in relationships when there are communication bre...

When you become a parent, you are forced to become an expert juggler. But let's be honest - we can't do it all. Something's gotta give. So maybe instead of trying to be perfect in every area, we need to change our expectations. Tiffany Dufu actually encourages us to drop a ball, or two, or three, in order to make us more productive and fulfilled. Watch the full clip here , and for more info about...

Life as a parent is a constant struggle for enough time. We need more time for work, more time for family, more time for ourselves - the elusive balance between work and family seems to be doomed. Today, Brigid Schulte, award-winning writer, sheds some wisdom on our struggle: We'll simply never have enough time. But once we accept the fact that we'll never be able to do everything we think we need...

You know those days when you just feel off, and it permeates into everything you do and touch? Psychologist and neuroscientist Lisa Feldman Barrett explains how we experience the world through "affect-colored glasses" - rather, what we feel (our "affect") actually changes what we experience and how we respond to the world around us. The question is, how do we use our "affect" to our advantage, rat...

What kind of tone do you create in your home? How do you want your kids to feel on a daily basis? Today Matthew Luhn, successful author and storyteller for 25 years, shares how Disney has found its success by understanding what people want to feel , and creating that feeling as an experience for them. What if we, as parents, could pinpoint the lifelong feeling we want to leave our kids with, and u...

Do you believe in the motto, "Let kids be kids"? Of course we want to protect the sweet innocence of childhood. But how do we also provide our kids the opportunities to make choices, to use their voice, to learn courage and strength? Our instinct is to shelter and protect - but 12-year-old Adora Svitak also speaks truth into how important it is to allow kids to interact with the world in order to...

Is anyone else struggling with bedtimes these days? Less recess play, more stress, and forced changes in our normal lifestyle are shifting our once-comfortable routines. Today, Gitte Winter Graugaard, a best-selling author and expert in peaceful bedtime routines, walks us through how you can implement a simple nightly tactic to reduce stress, eliminate distraction, and establish a vital connection...

While today's clip is from a talk given one month after the 2016 election, Celeste Headlee, an award-winning journalist and best-selling author, drops truth bombs that are possibly even more relevant today as we lean into the final stretch before the current election. I'm not usually one to talk politics here, but I also want to encourage us to lean into the hard conversations that lead to underst...

What could we do with an idea? What if you could change the world one person, one conversation at a time? What if we stopped getting in our kids' way of dreaming big? Bob Goff, a best-selling author and recovering lawyer, dares us to think outside the box and to do the things that really light us up. Watch the full clip here , and for more info about Bob Goff, check out his website . I highly reco...

We all want our kids to live their best lives, to thrive . But as a parent, do you believe you can thrive? It seems near impossible so much of the time, when most of us are just trying to survive. Richard Davidson, a psychology professor and founder/director of The Center For Healthy Minds, explains that by understanding the four pillars of a healthy mind, we can actually train our mind to thrive...

Parenthood doesn't come with a guidebook. We live in confusing times, and we are left to define parenting on our own terms. Sometimes, this is terrifying (since we don't want to mess up our kids!). But it can also be amazingly freeing. Today's episode features New York Times writer Jennifer Senior, who explains that there may be a better goal in parenting than the elusive dream of wanting our kids...

We don't always have realistic expectations of our kids. They aren't born understanding how to act or how things work - it's our job to teach them. In today's Throwback Thursday episode, Shelly Lefkoe lays down the law on having realistic expectations for our kids, how to help them respond to daily challenges, and how we can teach our kids in a way that gives them the confidence to try and succeed...