The Happy Hour #340: Tracy Foster

My guest for The Happy Hour #340 is Tracy Foster. Tracy Foster is co-founder and Executive Director of START | Stand Together and Rethink Technology which brings parents and community leaders together to develop “digital health” for raising kids with healthy screen habits. Her background in developing growth strategies for lasting social change really fueled her passion for rethinking cultural norms around technology. Tracy currently lives in Kansas City with her high school sweetheart husband, and their two boys.

Tracy has SO much knowledge around this topic that is so helpful to me as a mom of four. I’m so thankful she is sharing her wisdom with us today. In this episode, she talks about how to navigate digital health during COVID-19, being a safe place for your kids to talk to about harmful images, and practical steps to protect children from the dangers of pornography. She also dives into a three-part concept called safe, sane, and seen for helping children develop healthy digital habits. The difficult thing about technology is that it’s a great tool when used well, but it can also be a harmful obstacle. Tracy says “For most of our kids, their screens are probably at risk of being the biggest things standing in the way of themselves actually achieving the goals that they care about most in life.” As a parent, it can be challenging to figure out how to implement healthy habits with technology. The important thing to remember is that technology is a wonderful, helpful tool when used with good boundaries, and we need to focus more on how they're using it rather than how much. These are such helpful reminders, not just for my kids but for myself as well.

{You can listen to the show HERE, and make sure you never miss a Happy Hour by subscribing through your favorite podcast app (ie. iTunes, Stitcher).  And of course, I would love if you would share with your friends!}