Habits, Systems, Energy & Productivity Episodes

As we record this we're sitting in an Airbnb in Tangier, Morocco, living yet *another* of our family's dreams -- to road trip from Portugal to Morocco. Before this trip is over we'll travel from our home base in Portugal to the Sahara Desert in Morocco, having visited Ronda, Grenada, and Cordoba, in Spain, and Tangier, Chefchouen (the Blue City), Fes, Volubilis ancient ruins, Meknes, Casablanca, Marrakesh, Ait Ben Haddou and Zagora. We'll spend New Year's Eve beneath the stars of the desert wi...

If you've been a parent long you know that parenting often feels like a series of problems to solve. This is accurate. So it only makes sense that if you become a better problem-solver, you will become a better parent. Continuing on the theme from the last episode about how to create family stability, we explain HOW to improve your problem-solving skills -- and how to do it without damaging relationships or becoming controlling and domineering. We also explain how to PREDICT and PREVENT probl...

"My kids are having a hard time adjusting to _______ (moving, traveling, homeschooling, divorce, death, etc). How can I help them?" We've received a question like this dozens of times over the years. Parents the world over wonder how they can create family stability, safety, and healing -- especially in today's mixed-up crazy world. Some claim stability comes from 'staying in one place' -- as one commenter on Instagram said, "Kids want stability, staying in one place, traditions, predictab...

I (Rachel) cried today. It was because of the stress and pressure and overwhelm of 'all the things' I have to get done by a looming deadline, and it was sparked by the small irritations of family life. So Greg and I do what we usually do in a situation like this -- we sat down and psychoanalyzed WHY I was crying so we could process the 'emotional stacking' to help me get back to a positive state (and then recorded this episode 😁 ). But this isn't something I do only when I cry or feel overwhe...

After posting reels on Instagram about our most recent 6-month trip to 17 countries in Europe, Asia, and Africa, I've had many people ask: "How do you even BEGIN planning a trip like that?" "What was your budget for this experience?" "How do you afford it?" In this episode, we walk through our process for dreaming, envisioning, and then executing BIG goals and dreams. It's the exact process we've used again and again to travel to 50+ countries on five continents with our 7 children for the...

Do you feel stuck? Or like you're constantly dealing with the same problems -- in your marriage, with your kids, or your finances? Does it feel like you can never 'afford it' -- no matter what it is? Or that you keep having the same health issues crop up? Do you feel like "life sucks and then you die"? Did you realize that you can PREVENT most of these problems before they happen? Most people think that when things like this arise that it's 'just life'. But our research, study, and experien...

As part of the 28-Day Challenge we ask participants to choose one food to give up. Some choose sugar. But it’s not always easy to give it up. As one mom said: “…the sweet tooth got the best of me. I don’t drink soda and haven’t had a donut in two years; those our out. I don’t eat things with corn syrup, and I mostly use olive and coconut oils. But every time I decide, no more sugar, I can almost feel my brain go into panic mode. And it’s like a wave of dessert ideas comes in and the abi...

After episode #211 about What to Eat we received a lot of follow-up questions (thank you!) and were asked to do a follow up episode to clarify some things, such as: What if I'm lactose intolerant? What do you recommend to replace grass-fed milk? What about food storage? I store a lot of grains and legumes. What's the best way to eat them. Where do I find grass-fed meat, cheeses, butters, milk, etc.? How do I know I can trust package labels at the store and that they're actually what...

Thanks for all of the questions! They help us to have relevant conversations in these podcast episodes. If you have a question about anything in life or family, send them to support@extraordinaryfamilylife.com This week’s question is related to full-time family travel vs. home base travel but the answer is relevant for all of us — it’s principle-based and applicable to every area of life. So if you’re not a full-time family traveler, you still need to listen to this episode because you’re likely...

In many of our episodes, we often reference food and its connection to behavior and emotion. So it’s not surprising that we received this request: “I would LOVE to hear an episode on food! YES it is confusing and hard to navigate! We've already made some good changes, but I'd love to hear your specific thoughts about how you implement this both at home and on the road. I'd also love to hear some scientific evidence from books but mainly how you guys apply it… especially when your kids when th...

We truly love receiving emails and questions from followers, clients, and listeners because it gives us specific situations and challenges to address. We’ve learned that even though we (as humans) often feel that we’re the ‘only one’ dealing with a problem or circumstance, the truth is, we’ve discovered, if it’s happening to one person it’s likely happening to hundreds of others as well. That’s why we answer these questions in a podcast episode so that it doesn’t just help the person who asked, ...

We received another question from a mom who was interested in joining my Family Charts & Systems course and community. In an email I sent out, it said: As a mother of seven children, my life seriously changed forever once I learned how to FINALLY get organized. So when moms tell me they don't have a system for chores or study time, I'm like... "Say what?!" I get it. Some of you don't like systems. You'd rather live free-flowing and in the moment. I was that mom too, about ten years ago. Bu...

Welcome to today’s episode, we’re coming to you from Vienna, Austria this time. We just finished leading a WWII trip where we learned about the start of the war with the invasion of Warsaw, visited Auschwitz & Birkenau concentration camps, and explored Krakow and Vienna. We love to receive questions from listeners, coaching clients, and members of the Extraordinary Family Life Formula. One question we’ve received more than once in the last month is about misbehavior in young children. What do...

You might not realize it, but as a parent, YOU have a moral obligation to make sure that your child (or children) are NOT annoying. Why? Because in order for your children to function normally in the world — and to have a healthy, happy life — they need to be able to interact effectively in society. They can’t do this if they haven’t gained the skills of social interaction. One of the major signs (at any age) that they’re lacking these skills is if they have annoying behavior. If your children a...

We’re coming to you today from the city of Vilnius, Lithuania. We have loved traveling through the Baltic States. Today we’re going to continue answering some questions (since we were accidentally cut short in the last episode). We were asked about certain types of activities and whether or not our children participate in them because of our unique lifestyle. For example, ballet, piano, gymnastics, sports, and other activities that require mastery. In this episode, we discuss the pros and cons...

2:20 "If you haven't played video games in the last 10 years, they have become more addictive. The people who create games, and other media, are strategically using their knowledge of psychology and neurology in their favor. In schools, competition is being removed and discouraged and many boys are turning to video games. 7:17 From your experience, being married, raising boys, and working with boys, what have you perceived boys want and need? Tony Robbins teaches every human being has 6 basic...

We like to get our podcast topics from issues that really ‘fire us up’ (it makes for better discussions). This week, I was fired up by some comments left on an Instagram Reel I created about allowing ‘boys to be boys’ with audio taken from our recent Workshop on Boys Adrift — The Growing Epidemic of Undermotivated Boys and Underachieving Young Men. Some of them said things like: This post really misses the mark. The toxicity that exists around masculinity has nothing to do with children h...

We’ve all had the experience of being around someone who’s grumpy — even our spouse or children — and then soon we’re feeling grumpy as well. A mother of multiple children recently asked us, “When the people around me (aka my children) are grumpy, negative, or ‘down’, how do I not let that affect me?” Negative emotions and grumpiness are inevitable and a normal part of life. But when those around you are moody or grumpy, how do you keep that from bringing you ‘down’ as well? Is it possible t...

We are busy people. And so are you. We have a LOT going on, as I’m sure you do too. Human nature often makes us feel that we’re “too busy” to do things like morning routines or rituals. We’re “too busy” to do morning discussions with our family. But because you are so busy is exactly why you MUST do family discussions and devotionals. (When we use the term devotional we don't necessarily mean it as a religious activity, although it certainly can include religion and spirituality.) Daily family...

Getting things done is one of the most critical ingredients for achieving your dreams and goals and building a lasting family legacy. Yet it’s also one of the hardest things to do because of the natural ebbs, flows, and interruptions of family life. There are mouths to feed, diapers to change, laundry to fold, meals to prepare, and dishes to wash. How can you even think about taking action toward your big dreams and goals? Well, that’s what we’re going to dive into in this episode. I’ve spent ...

Greg Denning often says, “Tell me your habits and I’ll tell you your future.” Habits are the MOST important thing to determining the outcomes and happiness of your life. Habits will make or break your mental, emotional, spiritual, social, physical, family, and financial life. Where you are right now — and the quality and happiness of your life — is a DIRECT result of the habits you have had to this point. Where you want to go, who you want to become, and what you want to do, will be the DIREC...

"I would like to be more confident but my face turns red if I am embarrassed, nervous, shy, afraid, or just talking with someone. Without that handicap, I know I would be more confident, but unfortunately, I let it stop me all too often. But I heard that Mr. Denning used to be really shy and his face would turn red anytime people would even ask him a question in class. I'm heading off to college soon and am a bit overwhelmed. I do the same thing, I am generally an introverted person, but I reall...

We all have blind spots. We all have things we’re doing (or not doing) that are causing or contributing to our own problems. In our coaching, we often work with people who keep doing (or not doing) the things that are keeping them miserable and unhappy. If they could just STOP then they could drastically change their life. Of course, this is easier said than done, otherwise, you would ALREADY have stopped or started the things that need to be done and wouldn’t be suffering from the current chall...

Greg and I are always fascinated by ideas, the search for truth, intellectual discussion, and meaningful connection. As intentionally as we have designed our lifestyle, it’s still rare for us to have all of those things in one evening. But we got the chance last week when we drove to Birmingham, AL to listen to Jordan Peterson present a live lecture at the Alabama Theater. He discussed a chapter from his new book, Beyond Order: 12 More Rules for Life about the importance of beauty and art. In t...