Book Review: Building Better Families

I just finished reading Matthew Kelly's "Building Better Families: A Practical Guide to Raising Amazing Children". I thought there were a lot of great insights in it and that's funny because I approached the book with some cynicism due to the fact that Matthew Kelly was neither married nor a parent when he wrote it. However it appears from his anecdotes in the book that he and his 7 brothers enjoyed a good family life and upbringing with remarkable parents. As it turns out, this makes him qualified to speak on the subject.

Matthew Kelly is known for being a motivational Christian speaker. He talks to companies and individuals about becoming the best version of themselves. In "Building Better Families" he takes this familiar concept and applies it to the family. Specifically, he talks about how important it is that children see their parents working toward becoming the best version of themselves and that parents guide and encourage their children to make personal decisions with this goal in mind. He offers practical examples of how framing a disagreement between parent and child around this ultimate goal cools down conflict and makes the interaction more engaging "morally, ethically, spiritually" for the child in contrast to, for example, saying "No, because I said so."

Here are just a few of Matthew Kelly's prescriptions for parents: be authentic (share failures as well as successes with your kids), model the behaviors and character traits you wish to see in your kids, select good role models for yourself, and read books on leadership (because, he claims and I agree, great parenting is about great leadership).

I've never been so motivated to become the best version of myself as when I was pregnant with Holly. Knowing that everything I did could affect my baby's growth and development made me determined to do the right things, particularly in the domains of diet, exercise, stress, and emotional well being. I was pretty amazed at the things I was able to accomplish with this added sense of responsibility. But as soon as I gave birth to Holly, I relaxed my efforts: I started drinking coffee again, exercising less, and eating more junk food, to name a few.

Clearly, I should have continued bettering myself, and not just for Holly's sake. Thank you, Matthew Kelly, for helping me to regain that vision. I'm sure that my family will benefit from it.