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How to thrive in a fast world by slowing down

Do you feel that the world is moving too fast? Do you worry that the busyness of modern life is detracting from connection in families? Are you your child’s entertainment director or project manager, micro-managing your child’s life? Has parenting become a cross between a competitive sport and product development for you? Do you sometimes feel burnt out, overwhelmed, dissatisfied and worried about your child’s future?

Listen to this episode with Carl Honoré if you want to learn:

• How we are enthralled to the cult of speed. But there is a more mindful revolution going on.
• How busyness has become a badge of honour –if you’re not busy you’re not important. But busyness can be a way of running away from some very important questions like ‘Who am I?’, ‘What is my purpose?’, ‘Am I living the right life?’ Those questions require physical and cognitive space.
• How to do slow. Because racing through your life is not really living it.
• Awareness of beliefs that affect our choices such as that there are winners and losers in the game of life and our children need to get the edge on others to succeed; that there is only one path to success and if we deviate from the path our children will be ruined for life.
• How to transform your family life through a detox experience which will give you greater connection with each other and renewed vigour.
• About the 4 slow parenting commandments:

• For journeys of less than 2 miles ditch the car and walk and talk with your children
• Children drop all Extra Curricular Activities bar one.
• Families eat at least one meal together each day
• Parents have a relaxing ritual each day

Carl talks about how there is increased awareness in schools of children’s happiness but there still much panic amongst parents about getting children ready for the workplace. At TPP we are very aware of this and so created our workshop series Maximising Your Child’s Potential at School to help parents develop the ‘soft’ skills they’ll need to succeed, the ones which are not on the curriculum. Carl also identifies social media as adding considerably to the pressure to be perfect that both children and adults experience. Learn how to manage a child’s use of social media in our workshop Parenting in a Digital World.

In our celebration of vulnerability and perfect imperfection Carl shares with us a Low Parenting Moment of his own.

And his top tip for raising children to be confident, happy and successful.