Parents Unplugged

It is vitally important that parents model themselves all expectations that they have for their children, including time spent immersed in technology. Family rules such as no hand-held devices during family outings, family mealtimes, family discussions and before 8am/after 8pm should be across the board within a family if parents desire children to follow suit readily. Too, much time must be spent not only discussing appropriate technolgy use, as well as the pros and cons, but a true effort to introduce children to universal, life-affirming themes—self-love, transparency, authenticity, gratitude to name a few—to be integrated into everyday life alongside the advanced technology of our day. Life lessons both on and off the keyboard can only be processed within the heart and mind if the entire family remains unplugged for portions of each day, especially during times of increased opportunity for face-to-face, soul-to-soul interaction that can be hard to come by in today's modern world.