Looking for practical steps to limit the marketing and manipulative media your kids see?


​

In this issue: Navigating to key points of my latest podcast conversation, holding social media giants and app developers to a higher standard and learning to relinquish control by watching a sunset.

"Helping parents raise money-smart kids."

​​3 Ideas to Share & Save​
​(Click the link above πŸ‘† to read this week's edition on the web.)

Hello, friends!

​My latest podcast conversation went live this morning. Guest Josh Golin, the Executive Director of Fairplay, has dedicated his professional life to turning down the marketing spigot that drenches our children. (We parents get hit with a fair amount of ambient spray too. πŸ’¦) So our discussion is filled with practical ideas you can use to slow, or even stymie, the stream aimed at your kids.

Josh is also a returning guest. (You can listen to our first conversation here.) I brought him back to round out our informal series on topics I believe are essential in our quest to raise money-smart kids: media literacy, digital literacy and now "fair play" childhood.

β€” 1 β€”

Timing Is Key: Josh and I cover a lot of ground in our discussion, so I hope you listen to the full episode around the house, during your commute or on a run. (My favorite! πŸƒ)

video preview​

No matter how you choose to tune in, it's easy to navigate to key points of our conversation that might interest you. Just click any of the timed links below to find out more.

  • Fairplay's early childhood program focuses on screen time. [3:32]
  • Helping parents navigate screen time [6:27]
  • How beginning an allowance is akin to limiting a child's screen time [11:38]
  • Josh summarizes two bills working their way through Congress. [20:31]
  • What you can do to help get both bills passed in the House [24:59]
  • The arguments against both bills are centered around censorship. [25:42]
  • Josh's update on raising his child commercial-free [28:09]
  • Tackling branding issues with young children [33:51]
  • Three ways you can find commercial-free communities [37:49]
  • Advice from Ralph Nader [46:01]
  • Josh's time-sensitive request to contact your congressional representative about supporting the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA) [49:14]

β€” 2 β€”

Meta Manipulation and More: Did you know that Meta ran a successful test of their software that reduced screen time and made kids less anxious? Josh explains what happened next.

video preview​

Unfortunately, tech firms target young children's emotions, and their incentives (more eyeballs) run counter to what's good for our kids. For example, in our conversation, Josh describes a character who cries when a child tries to leave its app. 😬

If you'd like to hold social media giants and app developers to a higher standard, you can support two important pieces of legislation that have already passed the Senate by overwhelming majorities.

Both of these bills are now being considered in the House:

The Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA) is designed to protect minors from harmful social media content. You can review its details here. Fairplay's website even features a script to use when contacting your congressional representative about supporting this bill.

The Children and Teens' Online Privacy and Protection Act (COPPA 2.0) updates the original COPPA for the smartphone and social media age. (The first version is over twenty-six years old and predates the iPhone and Facebook. 🀯) Again, contact your congressional representative directly to ensure COPPA 2.0 makes it through the House.

Limiting harmful social media content and manipulative marketing aimed at our kids is a key step in raising them to be money-smart. Doing so tips the scales in our favor.

β€” 3 β€”

Weekly Wisdom: This week, we've talked a lot about taking more control of our kids' online lives. Of course, over time, we must overcome one of the more challenging sides of parenting β€” relinquishing control. I like this short meditation on the subject, and I hope you will too.

"One of the most satisfying feelings I know β€” and also one of the most growth-promoting experiences for the other person β€” comes from my appreciating this individual in the same way that I appreciate a sunset. People are just as wonderful as sunsets if I can let them be. In fact, perhaps the reason we can truly appreciate a sunset is that we cannot control it. When I look at a sunset as I did the other evening, I don't find myself saying, 'Soften the orange a little on the right hand corner, and put a bit more purple along the base, and use a little more pink in the cloud color.' I don't do that. I don't try to control a sunset. I watch it with awe as it unfolds. I like myself best when I can appreciate my staff member, my son, my daughter, my grandchildren, in this same way."
β€”Carl Rogers

As always, enjoy the journey!

John,
Chief Mammal

πŸ“— Get The Art of Allowance (for parents)
πŸ“š Get the
"Share & Save & Spend Smart" series (for kids)​
πŸ«±πŸ»β€πŸ«²πŸ½ Become a Partner (for businesses)

P.S. Please consult with a financial or investment professional before making any decisions that might affect your financial well-being.

​View this email in your browser.

Forwarded this email? Sign up here.

​

3 Ideas to Share & Save

Every Monday I share 3 ideas to help you and your family on the money-smart journey. I created "The Money Mammals" for kids and wrote The Art of Allowance book for parents like you. Won't you join me on the money-smart journey?

Read more from 3 Ideas to Share & Save

In this issue: Determining how much is enough, forgoing "loud budgeting" for "quiet compounding" and identifying the foundations of successful journeys. "Helping parents raise money-smart kids." 3 Ideas to Share & Save(Click the link above πŸ‘† to read this week's edition on the web.) Hello, friends! Before we dive into this week's ideas, I want to remind you that you can still receive my books in time for the holidays. While I'm a bit biased, I think they're great family gifts. πŸ‘‰πŸ» The Art of...

In this issue: Seeking shelter from the marketing monsoon, progressing towards a protopia and being more mindful of what we give and receive. "Helping parents raise money-smart kids." 3 Ideas to Share & Save(Click the link above πŸ‘† to read this week's edition on the web.) Hello, friends! I hope you had a nice Thanksgiving weekend. Can you feel the marketing monsoon blowing us towards the holidays? Since it's Cyber Monday, I want to let you know about a few gifts to consider to help you and...

In this issue: Nurturing your kids' creativity, encouraging their interests and sharing something old and something new. "Helping parents raise money-smart kids." 3 Ideas to Share & Save(Click the link above πŸ‘† to read this week's edition on the web.) Hello, friends! I'm excited to share this week's ideas with you. So let's dive right in! β€” 1 β€” "Big Brain" Trips: Richard Feynman, who won a Nobel Prize for his work on quantum physics, was one of America's great twentieth-century intellects. He...