Episode Details

Teen’s brains are wired to seek pleasure, avoid pain, and conserve energy. On top of that their prefrontal cortex isn’t fully developed yet, which means they don’t always make decisions that are in their best interest. 

They’re learning so much about how to navigate relationships and manage their day-to-day lives. 

Things like:

👉Handling setbacks, like not making the sports team or getting the job
👉Learning to be comfortable with how they look/sound/act
👉Figuring out how to make and keep friends
👉Discovering how to delay gratification and work towards long-term goals
👉Understanding dating and romantic relationships

So many of these things are impacted by neurological development, and I love a good metaphor for explaining complex processes like this. 

Joey Mascio, my guest for episode 134 of the De Facto Leaders podcast is full of great metaphors to help kids understand how their brains work. 

Joey is a Teen Life Coach, former teacher, and creator of the SideKick To Hero mindset coaching app for teens. He’s also the host of the Secrets to An Awesome Life podcast. 

In this episode we talk about helping teens embrace discomfort, navigate the nuances of dating and friendships, and create a personal narrative that helps them reach their goals.

In this episode, we discuss: 

✅Does self-help focused on relaxation and taking a break help teens find happiness? 

✅How he uses Victor Frankl’s 3 ways to find meaning to coach teens, including: meaningful work, connection with others, and having a productive attitude toward unavoidable suffering. 

✅Tips for helping teens and tweens handle rejection. 

✅How to help teens navigate the nuances of friendships and dating

✅Ways to help teens delay gratification and get comfortable being uncomfortable. 

In this episode, I mention the School of Clinical Leadership, my program for related service providers who want to take a leadership role in implementing executive functioning support. I also give you strategies that support self-directed talk and working memory. You can learn more about the program here: https://drkarendudekbrannan.com/efleadership

Learn more about today's sponsors, Playworks, IXL and Renaissance:

Learn more about Renaissance:

As a global leader in education technology operating in more than 110 countries, Renaissance is committed to providing educators with insights and resources to accelerate growth and help all students build a strong foundation for success. We believe that technology can unlock a more effective learning experience, ensure that students get the personalized teaching they need to thrive, and help educators and administrators to truly, fully, See Every Student. Learn more at renaissance.com.

We’re proud to be sponsored by Playworks, a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization with evidence-based practices that help schools improve the health and well-being of children by increasing opportunities for physical activity and safe, meaningful play.

If you’re a school or district leader struggling with the challenge of chronic absenteeism, as so many are across the U.S., you may not realize that structured recess is a research-backed approach to keep kids in school. In fact, a UC Berkeley study of Title I schools found that those partnering with Playworks had significantly lower chronic absenteeism rates. Further, Mathematica research demonstrated that Playworks schools spent 27% less time transitioning from recess back to learning, saving teachers valuable instructional time. 

These results are possible for your students, too. Learn how Playworks can help you improve student-educator relationships, belonging, and attendance

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