The Agile Family Meeting

In an agile system, ideas flow from the top down and from the bottom up. The centerpiece is the weekly meeting built around shared decision making, open communication, and adaptability. In the home, everyone gathers around the table, and then you ask three questions:

• What worked well in our family this week?
• What didn’t work well in our family this week?
• What will we agree to work on this week?

With agile practices, enlist the children whenever possible in their own upbringing. When children plan their own time, evaluate their own work, and participate in their own rewards and punishment, they exert greater cognitive control over their lives and become more internally motivated.

Our instinct as parents is to give orders to our children since we think we know best. But telling your kids the same thing over and over may not really help.