Why tech-savvy youth need confident parents: What does that look like?

by Joanna Jullien | Sep 24, 2019 | addiction, Cyberbullying, Discipline, Family, Mobile Phone Use and Children, Parent-child communication, Parent-child relationship, Parental control, Parenting, Prevention strategy, Sexting, Social Media, Substance Abuse & Addiction, Texting, Wisdom

When I started this mission to strengthen the parent-child bond in a cyber-powered world, my own confidence as a parent had been deeply shaken with the advent of the mobile device in the hands of youth. In the fall of 2004, my digital native had purchased his own...

Who is in control? Two truths about power struggles with tech-savvy youth

by Joanna Jullien | Mar 15, 2019 | Faith, Family, Mobile Phone Use and Children, Parent-child communication, Parent-child relationship, Parental control, Parenting, Social Media, Teenagers, Texting, Wisdom

Executive summary In a world punctuated by dynamic, innovative and disruptive social media trends parents can easily perceive that they have very little control over the security and behavior of their tech-savvy children. When parents harbor a fearful desire to be in...

A sixth-grader’s insights on responsible use of a smartphone

by Joanna Jullien | Feb 25, 2019 | Boundaries, Discipline, Family, Mobile Phone Use and Children, Parent-child communication, Parent-child relationship, Parenting, Social Media, Texting, Wisdom

This is a guest blog feature by my niece, Katie. She is in the sixth grade and I asked her to share her insights about how she is going to use the smartphone for good when her parents do allow her to receive one of her own. I offer her thoughts to help illustrate what...

Steps to redirect your child’s thinking habits to inspire confidence

by Joanna Jullien | Jan 8, 2019 | Anxiety, Boundaries, Bullying, Children & Teens Problems & Pitfalls, Children's Health & Mental Health, Children's mental health, Cyber Safety, Cyberbullying, Education, Faith, Family, Happiness, Mobile Phone Use and Children, Parenting, Social Media, Suicide, Teenagers, Texting, Wisdom, Youth Suicide

One significant challenge for youth today is that they are born into a cyber-powered world that hypes negative reasoning. This is an intense environment which when unchecked can shape a personal view of the world; that it is never going to “feel safe.”  And this world...

Why my new smartphone made me anxious and still I am hopeful

by Joanna Jullien | Jan 2, 2019 | Faith, Family, Mobile Phone Use and Children, Parent-child communication, Parent-child relationship, Parenting, Texting, Wisdom

Last Sunday my youngest son and his wife (who are millennials) helped me select a new smartphone to bring in the new year. Admittedly, I am conditioned differently for trust in that I would prefer not to have every data point about me connected to one mega cyber-tech...

Signs your smartphone is controlling you and your family

by Joanna Jullien | Dec 21, 2018 | Children & Teens Problems & Pitfalls, Children's mental health, Education, Family, Internet addiction, Mobile Phone Use and Children, Parent-child communication, Parental Authority, Parenting, Social Media, Texting, Wisdom

As an educator and coach on parenting and family life, I have studied how the pedophiles and commercial interests engage tech-savvy youth so they can exploit them. To that end, I teach caring adults how to engage youth to empower them and impart wisdom. In this...