In our culture, punishment and discipline are often used interchangeably. However, the purposes of punishment and discipline are very different. Check out the chart below. In short, punishment is discouraging, painful, and leaves a person feeling bad. Discipline opens a path to grow and move forward, leading to encouragement. When my kids do things that… Read More
Bad Tip #1: Make sure to point out every mistake that your child makes. After all, they have lived this long. They should have it all figured out by now. The last thing they need is positive feedback that might go to their head. Bad Tip # 2: Make sure to tell your child that… Read More
Helping Kids Cultivate Their Interests All parents have hopes and dreams for our kids. Some would love nothing more than to have kids follow in their footsteps, take over the family business, be successful in what interests them personally. I have heard dads who hold their newborns and say he or she is going to… Read More
Dealing with Attention-Seeking Kids Do your kids get on your nerves with all of their attention-seeking behavior? Yep, mine do too. Bear with me on this post because I want to be direct in addressing this issue. I have worked with children and adolescents for over a decade, and I have heard many parents, teachers,… Read More
As parents, we are first leaders, trainers, advice givers, and boundary enforcers. However, I also want to focus on the profound impact that our relationship, not just our leadership, can have on our children. Authority: We have the incredible responsibility to teach our kids what we believe they will need to know as they grow… Read More
How many of you would say that your own parenting style perfectly mimics that of your parents? My parents and I have similar family values, but my wife and I approach training our kids differently than what I grew up with. My wife and I are teaching a parenting class at church and the discussion… Read More
How Did Your Family Do It? Can you think back to your own childhood and adolescence? Were there some positive experiences that you had that were instrumental in shaping who you are as an adult? Did these things impact the professions you chose or the way you raise your kids? As early as I can… Read More
I sat down to write this blog post when I heard a familiar screaming from my boys’ room, “Ahhh, Why would you do that?!?” I knew that we would again have an opportunity to use punishment, discipline, or both. Punishment and Discipline are not synonymous. While punishment can go hand-in-hand with discipline, they have different… Read More
A Guide to Parenting Styles in 2021 Parenting approaches are changing. Children of parents who balance warmth and discipline well tend to be more emotionally stable as adults. I want to outline the 4 parenting styles that are predominant in popular psychology and offer some insight into how my wife and I modify this to… Read More
I hope this post finds you well. We had a nice Christmas with my parents and brother, even with having to wear masks the whole time. Now we are getting ready for New Year’s at the Maisen house. 2020 brought a lot of challenges with it. However, one positive thing it did for us was… Read More
Christmas 2020 is certainly going to look different than we are used to. The sad truth is that many families with not have the opportunity to gather with extended families and friends. So, what are we going to do about it? Unfortunately, we cannot change the CDC recommendations or the COVID numbers. However, I wonder… Read More
Have you ever taken the Myers-Briggs Personality Test? There are many personality indicators involved, but I want to focus on Thinkers (T) and Feelers (F). These indicators give insight on how you experience life. All people certainly think and feel, but we tend to lean towards one of these more than the other. My daughter… Read More