Back to School commercials! the warning shot of the inevitable. NOOOO!!! goes the response as these signals of a new school year increase in number. It’s that time of year…again.

As parents we are consistently questioning our decisions, expectations, and being too lax in any number of areas. Couple that with a new school year and you get The Reset. For a majority of families, end of summer gives way to the motivation to “do things differently this year”. Less screen time, structured after school, better grades, less attitude, (insert your mantra). And yes, the start of anything new brings a great place to reboot the system. But slow down Taladega Nights. If you want success with The Reset, don’t try to overhaul the system.

I wear myself out suggesting to start with one change and leaving the others until you get the first one up and running. Reach out and with two hands, push that big Reset button. Get the ship upright again. But please, start with one thing (ok maybe two) and get it running consistently before moving to the next. Oh, and get yourself a new pair of shoes too.