A top corporate executive, who is very busy, made a commitment to make it home at 6pm everyday because his family is important to him. He has 2 young boys—5 and 8 years old.
He sticks to his commitment and makes it home by 6pm each night of the week. However, when he gets home, he has his laptop open, his phone by his side and continues to work all the way up to bedtime.
A few weeks go by and then, due to timezone challenges related to work, he can't make it home till much later—after his children have gone to bed. Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday roll by. He misses his kids so much. So, he calls his wife Thursday morning and asks her to keep the boys up till he gets home around 9pm so that he can tuck them in.
He walks in at 9pm, puts down his briefcase and immediately runs upstairs to the boys. He's wrestling with them, reading books to them, tucking them in and, as he's turning off the light and walking out, his 5-year old says, "Hey Daddy, can you come home at 9 o'clock every night?"
We know that it's not just about being physically present in the same space as your children that matters, it's about being fully engaged with them that makes the difference.
Listen to more stories by Dr. Julie Wei on the Janus Henderson Radio Podcast called, 3 Ways to Address the Rising Stress in Our Youth. Listen on Spotify.
PODCAST TESTIMONIALS
"I’ve been listening! I loved Dr. Wei's interview with Dr. J. She was so eloquent and compelling with her personal story. I have already started to make a deliberate effort to not talk about the traffic or any 'noise' when I get home so I live in the moment, give the best me to my family and not spread the stress in my household." —Alexandria
"I listened to the whole thing. I love her emotion when she talks about her daughter." —Catharine
"Dr. Wei was brilliant! Such an important topic. Thank you for sharing." —Loree