Sunday, August 12, 2007

Managing Energy and Parenting...

Once you get above 1 kid (and maybe with only one kid as well), parenting strategy can be narrowed down to: how effectively are you managing your kids' energy?

Take this morning, for example.

After a big day of eating yesterday, I was ready for a nice run (plus the weather wasn't too atrocious). Tungsten had a playdate for the AM scheduled, so that left me man-to-man with Paco.

To get him to sit for 30-40 minutes in a stroller for my run, I needed to get him tired beforehand. As a result, I gave him the opportunity to walk from our house w/Tungsten to her playdate. This was a respectable distance and did the job.

He sat nicely while I ran and I rewarded him with some time at the playground afterwards.

Managing energy, though, isn't just about kids, it applies to you as well. Read a great book about this (Power of Full Engagement )a few years back, which I should probably read again, as its lessons are even more valuable now.

It's too easy to just keep pushing, but you have to know what your internal energy is like and manage accordingly.

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