Can you help me give a sh*t?

Recently a listener reached out to Becca to ask about when to focus on building sustainable motivation vs when to just use standard extrinsic motivators, like rewards and punishments. To discuss this topic, Becca pulled in her spouse and co-parent, Mark Fasano, because it's both a topic with no one-size-fits-all-answer, and a topic they've discussed many times before. Becca shares how her tendency is to err on the side o building sustainable motivation, Mark on how his is to prioritize whatever will get the job done in the moment. They share examples of when it's worked well to learn from each other and crack jokes that only other Gen Xers will get. Please reach out to let us know your thoughts and questions on this or other topics via the form at canyouhelpmegivea.com. We can't wait to hear from you!

This week, Becca is joined by Cath Covacin, founder of Keys to Potential, who discusses key strategies she's learned form teaching young people in Australia on how to engage with tweens and teens so they want to listen to and connect with you even though the brain development is urging them to do a lot more listening to their peers. You can learn more about Cath's work, including her book and online courses for students, at KeystoPotential.com.au.

High school teacher Diane Manser started a journal a few years ago, trying to navigate the emotional work of being a teacher. At the request of other teachers, she turned that into the book I Didn't Sign Up For This. She joins today's conversation to share the key insight sh had as a teacher that allowed her to change how she navigates the hard emotional labor of teaching (& parenting): being in charge is not the same as being in control. She and Becca chat about how there's a lot of overlap between what motivates young people to learn and what motivates teachers to keep showing up for a tough job.Check out teachingisemotional.com and her instagram, facebook, and tiktok pages for more.

In contrast with last week's episode, this week we delve into the flip side of the college question with Kadeem Leslie. He was a straight A student in college, went on to get a Master's degree, and then became an entrepreneur and investor -- and began to wonder at the exact return on investment (ROI) of college degrees. He shares his somewhat controversial but thoughtful take on how parents and students could work together to evaluate whether college or a more entrepreneurial, non-college pathway might be the best fit for a teenager interested in figuring out how they're going to earn money in adulthood. Listen in on today's episode to learn tips for evaluating exactly what the ROI is on that degree you're considering, how to run some simple experiments to see if an alternate pathway (like being a youtuber or trader) is right for you, and more. You can find Kadeem on instagram at iamkade_ and on youtube as well. And here are links to the two resources he mentioned in the episode: https://siteselection.com/cc/workforce/2022/education-level-is-only-one-part-of-the-lifetime-earnings-picture.cfm and https://freopp.org/oppblog/we-calculated-return-on-investment-for-30-000-bachelors-degrees-find-yours/Please don't forget to review and subscribe--and let us know whether you'd like more episodes like this one, or to have us hit on other topics instead. We want to hear from you!

Often, students and families don't start thinking about college readiness until their junior year of high school. Or, on the flip side, some families have been thinking about it since elementary school, carefully selecting every move that might lead to that perfect college application. Either way, former guidance counselor Briana Rahmani noticed that there's something many families overlook: the importance of exploration. Listen to today's episode to understand the important role exploration without too much pressure plays in college readiness. And learn even more valuable tips and resources at Briana's website, thecollegeinme.com and @thecollegeinme on IG and facebook.

Today's episode is a very candid (and explicit--there are a lot of curse words in this one) conversation with recovering addict Rory Londer about how connection allowed him to come back from drug use that had him living unhoused and stealing to get his next high. He shares his full story in his book, Should've Been Dead, but in today's episode he shares the parts of his story that are most relevant for parents and educators working with young people. Rory speaks about the young people he has connected with and helped since getting clean and coming to speak at schools and ALCs, and why checking yourself for authenticity and expectations can make a massive difference in helping at-risk teens. You can learn more about Rory and his story at shouldvebeendead.com. You can also find him at rorylonderspeaker on Facebook.