The Ultimate Guide to Calm and Effective Parenting

On-Demand Class · Parenting

As times get more stressful, Ned Johnson offers learned and professional tips on how to navigate parenting with less anxiety and more understanding.

Class Description

Are you still fighting over homework? Is social media still a scary space to allow your kids to explore? Are you working to help your children achieve their dreams, or only what you expect of them? In this series of lectures, we'll ask and answer hard questions surrounding parenting in the 21st Century. From setting healthy boundaries and expectations, learning a different language and posture of parenting and leading with empathy and validation. Come listen in as we strive to make parenting easier, one conversation at a time.

Sessions Overview

  1. Introduction to Ned Johnson: A professional “tutor-geek” since 1993, Ned has spent more than 40,000 one-on-one hours helping students conquer an alphabet of standardized tests and honing his insights on communicating with students and parents.
  2. Our Why: Is a sense of control helpful to all involved? Do you feel like you must always help your child or you're a "terrible" parent? Within this series, we explore how allowing our kids to fall and make mistakes can actually strengthen both our and their resolve.
  3. A Sense of Control: Stress can be shocking. Here, Ned shares the famous study of two rats experiencing stress and how finding your own sense of control helps you take on those stressful moments in life and parenting.
  4. Defining Your Why: Are we motivated by reward or enjoyment? By punishment or support? Here, Ned shares how defining your why is so important to self-motivation.
  5. Empathy and Validation: What does support look like? In this session, Ned talks through how to be a consultant for your children when hard emotions surface.
  6. "I Love You Too Much To Fight With You About Your Homework": Homework can feel like a constant fight. But forcing homework time does more harm than good. Let's talk about other options to hopefully make homework time easier.
  7. The Language of a Non-Anxious Presence: We can't be there every second of the day, but we can be a trusted figure our children can run to when the world gets to be too much.
  8. "You're Going to Have a Great Life": Ned shares a poignant moment he shared with his daughter who was having a tough time. We all will experience moments that feel like they'll last forever. But remember, better is on the horizon.
  9. Self-Determination Theory: Some kids are never told that they are smart and talented. How does that impact them and what can we do to flip the narrative?
  10. "Inconvenient Brains": Society was not built with those who experience it differently in mind. With that said, how can we best support our neurodivergent children in the ways they need?
  11. Motivational Interviewing: Let's ask more questions when it comes to helping our children strive higher and bounce back from setbacks.
  12. Healthy vs. Toxic Expectations: Are your children included in the dreams you have for them? Do you really know what they want to do? Are you supportive or demanding? Let's dive in.
  13. Perfectionism: No one wins the game of perfectionism. So why do we keep playing? Here, Ned shares how striving to be perfect can lead to ugly discoveries.
  14. P.E.R.M.A.: What is considered the formula for happiness? Watch along to learn and add some feel-good vibes to your serotonin levels.
  15. A Lifestyle of Gratitude: Expressing gratitude is incredibly powerful to sustained happiness. So is sleep. So let's cover how being well-rested with an attitude of gratitude helps our brains function at their best.
  16. The Importance of Sleep: How's your sleep? Is it upended by phones, stress and life in general? A lot of us struggle with getting good sleep as adults and it's doubly bad for kids. Let's talk about realistic ways to get better sleep.
  17. Getting Sleep Buy-In: Is sleep a taboo topic in your home? Instead of trying to enforce bedtimes again, Ned gives us questions and prompts to use in order to shift the dynamic.
  18. Default Mode Network: Daydreaming. Meditating. Downtime. We all find our flow at rest. When's the last time you allowed yourself and your kids to just be? To just... rest?
  19. Teens and Tech: Social media isn't going anywhere. It's how many of us engage with others with similar likes and interests. The same goes for our kids. Just because we may not always understand it, doesn't mean it's not worthwhile.
  20. Be the Influence: We want influence over our kids vs. power and control. Our parenting relationship depends on our ability to consult rather than control, influence instead of direct.
  21. Closing: We hope this series was helpful in sharing how we as parents are always learning and are free to adjust where necessary. We've enjoyed this time chatting, being vulnerable and opening up on how parenting is a rollercoaster filled with ups and downs, but it's a ride worthy of taking.

Your Instructor

Ned Johnson

A professional “tutor-geek” since 1993, Ned has helped students conquer an alphabet of standardized tests and honed his insights on communicating with students and parents. A battle-tested veteran in the fields of test preparation, anxiety management, and student performance, Ned coaches kids how to manage their stress while simultaneously motivating and empowering them to reach their full potential. Ned has written for the New York Times, The Telegraph, U.S. News & World Report & The Washington Post and co-authored three books, including the national best-seller The Self-Driven Child.

Degrees and Certifications

Ned has spent more than 40,000 one-on-one hours helping students.

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