Nearly two-thirds of today’s teens want to become entrepreneurs according to a 2022 survey. But how do parents raise their children so they have the right traits to succeed? Many parents resist letting their children figure out their own path for fear that they won’t succeed. However, only doing what their parents think will make them successful will result in young people becoming dispirited and unhappy.

The So-What: Parenting expert Margot Machol Bisnow interviewed 70 entrepreneurs and their parents to learn what’s needed to incubate an entrepreneur successfully. A recurring theme was letting their children take the lead in their own life and then providing steadfast support. Parents need to lead by following, regardless of where their child wants to go. Children who are allowed to figure out their own passion, and then are encouraged in that passion, live lives filled with joy and purpose.

Margot Machol Bisnow spent 20 years in government, including as an FTC Commissioner and staff director of the President’s Council of Economic Advisers. For the last 10 years, she has spoken to parent groups about raising creative, confident, resilient children who achieve their dreams. She served as an Advisor to EQ Generation, an after-school program in New York City that gives children the skills to succeed; on the Advisory Board of the MUSE School in Malibu, that prepares young people to live consciously through passion-based learning; and on the Board of Spark the Journey in Washington DC, that mentors low-income high school students to achieve college and career success. Her new book is Raising an Entrepreneur: How to Help Your Children Achieve Their Dreams – 99 Stories from Families Who Did. Learn more at raisinganentrepreneur.com.

• Why is it important to let children choose their passion and work really hard at it? And why should parents support that passion, regardless of what it is?
• Why is it important to let children compete if you want a child with grit?
• What should you teach children about losing if you want a child who isn’t afraid to take risks? And why is that important?
• Why is it important to encourage children to be curious and think of new ways to solve problems?
• Why does raising kind, compassionate children enable them to find solutions the world needs? And how does that make them more successful?
• Are grades and test-taking ability key to entrepreneurial success? If not, why not?

Sponsored by EdGerety.com

Resources

• Guest Website: https://raisinganentrepreneur.com/
• Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/raisinganentrepreneur1/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/margotbisnow/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/margot-machol-bisnow-a29550b5/

Dana Kay is a Board-Certified Holistic Health and Nutrition Practitioner, specializing in the natural treatment of ADHD. She is a two times international bestselling author and CEO / founder of ADHD Thrive Institute and The ADHD Thrive Method 4 Kids program.

As a mother of a child with ADHD, she knows firsthand the struggles that come with parenting a neurodiverse child. When her son was struggling with his ADHD symptoms, she tried everything she could think of to help him - medication, various therapies, counseling, essential oils, supplements, parenting techniques - but nothing moved the needle. For years, she felt trapped in her own home.

That all changed when she learned how to reduce the inflammation in her son’s body, which in turn reduced his ADHD symptoms completely.

Dana knows the freedom that is possible once parents learn to reduce ADHD symptoms. Using food and targeted supplementation, she was able to reduce her son’s ADHD symptoms so much so that he no longer needed any medication. Since then, she has worked with close to one thousand other families, helping them find the same freedom she found.

Dana has been featured in Forbes and on Fox and CBS, and various other online media. She has also been a guest at multiple parenting and ADHD summits and podcasts. Her mission is to help families reduce ADHD symptoms naturally so that children with ADHD can thrive at home, at school, and in life.

• Can you tell us a little bit about why you began working in the holistic health and nutrition industry?
• What were some of the challenges you were facing with your son with ADHD?
• What ADHD interventions did you try, and how did they each go?
• You have mentioned that there was one huge turning point in your journey with your son. Can you share that with us? (referring to when the doctor requested that 4th medication)
• What happened next…once you realized that medication was not the right path for your family?
• What happened in your family once you changed your diet? Did you notice any changes in your son?

Sponsored by EdGerety.com

Resources

• Podcast: https://adhdthriveinstitute.com/the-soaring-child-podcast-thriving-with-adhd

Social

• Website: https://adhdthriveinstitute.com
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/adhdthriveinstitute
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/adhdthriveinstitute
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ADHDThriveInstitute
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/74302454
• Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/adhdthriveinstitute
• TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@adhd_thriveinstitute

Media

• Publications: https://adhdthriveinstitute.com/publications

Dr. Stoltzfus’ mission is to provide information, education, guidance, and resources to parents of young adults struggling to launch their young adults into self-sufficient and responsible adulthood while maintaining a caring bond with them. More today than ever, parents of young adults are trying to determine the best approach to aiding their young adults in their challenges of identity, independence, and intimacy without contributing to their dependency or alienation.

Over fifty percent of 18-29-year-olds live with one or both parents; some of these kids are stuck and not moving toward independence. Another group of young people has left home, but 1 out of 4 have cut off communication with their parents for, on average, four months; some will never reconnect. Both of these situations represent failures to launch. When there is a failure to launch, parents and young adults suffer.

How can parents navigate the letting go process of the teenage years in order to prepare the teen for greater independence and responsible adulthood? Moving from control and direction to influence, coaching, collaborating, and consulting. Moving closer not to control but to support the key developmental tasks of adolescence- identity, independence, and intimacy. The importance of demonstrating backbone with love or “tough love.”

• What can parents do to successfully let go and launch their young adult?
• When is it time for young adults to leave home?
• The six practices that are important to set up a successful launch into adulthood.
• Balancing support and letting go with setting limits and saying no.
• What are basic truths about parents and their adult children?

Sponsored by EdGerety.com

Resources

• Book: Jack’s latest book was published in September of this year and is available on Amazon: The Parent’s launch Code: Loving and Letting Go of Our Adult Children.
• Website: parentslettinggo.com

Michael Huber pursued a career in sports psychology after almost 20 years in the corporate world. He was inspired to make this change through recovery from a gambling addiction, as well as by the dysfunctional things he witnessed as a sports parent and volunteer coach. His mission is to give young athletes and their families the tools to successfully navigate an increasingly challenging and sometimes toxic youth sports environment.

• What helps motivate young athletes?
• How to help young athletes advocate for themselves with coaches and players.
• Perfectionism mindset – how to keep it in balance.
• Dealing with injuries and how it can inspire a young athlete.
• College application for a student athlete.
• How to know if your student-athlete needs a sports psychology coach.

Sponsored by EdGerety.com

Resources

• Website: https://michaelvhuber.com/

Kristal DeSantis is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, a Clinically Certified Trauma Professional, and a State of Texas approved Premarital Education Provider. She is the creator of The STRONG model of Relational Therapy. Her expertise helps parents, teachers, and coaches navigate the challenges of teaching teens healthy relationship skills.

• The importance of parents modeling healthy relationship skills.
• The pillars of healthy relationships are.
• Safety in a relationship includes self awareness, stability, self-regulation, and self-expression.
• Trust: sometimes trust means making repairs in the relationship.
• Respect: make sure you’re communicating your boundaries.
• Openness: the importance of being open and sharing.
• Nurturing: especially important for fathers to be involved in a nurturing way.
• Generosity: when you love someone you go the extra mile for them.
• Privacy and secrecy: there’s a difference.
• Helping teens navigate relationships, especially around consent, boundaries, and respect.
• How attachment and trauma affect relationships and what parents can do to break the cycle.

Sponsored by EdGerety.com

Resources

• Website: https://www.strong.love/

Understanding the impact of our early experiences and how we adapted allows us to better understand ourselves as people and as parents. The influence of our early attachments on how we learned to relate should not be underestimated; it can offer us valuable insight into how we may behave as a parent. Yet in all cases, no matter what our attachment style is, being a good parent starts with exploring our own story and being willing to look at any pain we experienced growing up.

We can develop ourselves and develop healthier relationships, which will allow our children to have a healthier and more secure attachment with us. In order to make that happen, we have to be open and focus on our own emotional growth and self-development.

As a child, Bev lived in a very unpredictable and chaotic environment where she never knew if she could rely on her parents to meet her emotional needs. This led her to absorb unhealthy relationship ideas based on what she was witnessing: she believed relationships were supposed to be unbalanced, uncertain, and overall chaotic. If you have an insecure attachment style, you probably relate to her experience, and navigating relationships can be particularly difficult for you.

Prior to becoming a Certified Attachment Practitioner and founding Securely Loved, Bev was an Executive Leader, University Lecturer and published author, having obtained her Masters' Degree in 2006. She has dedicated her entire career (25+ years) working with adults in the realm of personal growth and professional development.

• Defining the traits of secure vs. insecure attachment.
• The first 5 years of a child’s life creates their future attachment style.
• Intergenerational trauma can be repeated in raising kids if the parent doesn’t heal their own wounds.
• Understanding how our attachment style affects our emotional + thought patterns, communication style, relationship to boundaries, coping mechanisms, and ability to emotionally regulate.
• Using attachment theory to navigate conflict with your teen.

Sponsored by EdGerety.com

Resources

• Website: https://securelyloved.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/securely_loved
• TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@securely_loved
• Free attachment style quiz: https://securelyloved.com/attachment-quiz

Jessica Speer is the award-winning author of BFF or NRF (Not Really Friends)? A Girls Guide to Happy Friendships and Middle School - Safety Goggles Advised. Her interactive books engage and entertain readers by combining the stories of preteens and teens with fun activities and practical insights. She has a master’s degree in social sciences and explores social-emotional topics in ways that connect with kids.

• Why are friendship and social struggles common in the preteen and teen years?
• The book shares nine hidden friendship truths. What are some of these truths?
• What is the Friendship Pyramid, and why is it useful?
• The book explores the difference between conflict and bullying and ways to respond to each.
• The book has interactive components, like quizzes and fill-in-the-blanks. Why is that important?

Sponsored by EdGerety.com

Resources

• Website: https://jessicaspeer.com/

In this episode we’ll explore the dichotomy between challenge and change in our lives as our kids grow, seek independence and control, and what that means for us as parents and as individuals.

Jay Ramsden, the enlightening voice behind The Empty Nest Coach on TikTok and Instagram, helps people navigate the uncharted seas of mid-life and empty nesting as he thoughtfully unravels the threads of change, growth, and self-discovery in what has become your new normal. Jay believes there are endless opportunities awaiting us in this new phase of life because life doesn't end in your 40s, 50s, and beyond -- it begins again.

• Letting go and moving on
• Having trust that we’ve set them up for success
• What does letting go look like in our conversations with our kids?
• How to find balance in our relationships as they gain their independence
• Answering the questions; what now and what’s next as parents decide their next chapter
• Examining the challenge of change as our kids grow

Sponsored by EdGerety.com

Resources

• Website: https://www.jasonramsden.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/the.emptynest.coach/
• TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@the.emptynest.coach
• This Empty Nest Life Podcast - https://www.thisemptynestlife.com/