Here’s what my friend told me over coffee last week. “They have so many opportunities,” he said about the teens he mentors. “If I had half the opportunities around me at your age that you do right now… I would not be sitting where I am.” I asked him what was holding them back. He…
I received a phone call from a concerned grandfather, parent and community leader recently. He said he and his wife have been volunteering at several elementary schools in the area, and there’s one glaring factor that school faculty are concerned about: Parents seem to be more concerned about whether or not their kids like them…
https://firstthings.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/pexels-tatianasyrikova-3933259-scaled.jpg13652048Lauren Hallhttps://firstthings.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/ftf-logo-300x186.pngLauren Hall2025-10-05 08:00:002025-10-02 13:36:23Should Parents Care If Their Kids Like Them or Not?
Sometimes my inner critic has a megaphone. Like when I’m late to first grade pickup or send an email with a typo. When does your inner critic show up? When you say the wrong thing in a meeting? At breakfast when you’ve burned the toast? Or maybe you’re in a season of high stress and…
https://firstthings.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/pexels-liza-summer-6382662-scaled.jpg13652048Lauren Hallhttps://firstthings.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/ftf-logo-300x186.pngLauren Hall2025-09-28 08:00:002025-09-22 12:45:47Taming and Learning From the Voice in Your Head
How Families Turn Exposure into Opportunity
Here’s what my friend told me over coffee last week. “They have so many opportunities,” he said about the teens he mentors. “If I had half the opportunities around me at your age that you do right now… I would not be sitting where I am.” I asked him what was holding them back. He…
Should Parents Care If Their Kids Like Them or Not?
I received a phone call from a concerned grandfather, parent and community leader recently. He said he and his wife have been volunteering at several elementary schools in the area, and there’s one glaring factor that school faculty are concerned about: Parents seem to be more concerned about whether or not their kids like them…
Taming and Learning From the Voice in Your Head
Sometimes my inner critic has a megaphone. Like when I’m late to first grade pickup or send an email with a typo. When does your inner critic show up? When you say the wrong thing in a meeting? At breakfast when you’ve burned the toast? Or maybe you’re in a season of high stress and…