The Legacy Center presents:
Directions Not Included: Parenting Podcast
Directions Not Included is a local monthly podcast that features candid conversations for a stronger community. So many of life lessons do not include instructions. It’s a live and learn situation, especially when it comes to raising strong families and creating healthy communities. Together, we discuss tough topics that help make us better people and overall, a better community.
The podcast, that currently has 11 episodes, focuses on topics that help increase protective factors in children. Each episode is tied to a specific developmental asset. Search Institute, a nonprofit organization that studies and works to strengthen youth success in schools, families, and the community, outlined 40 developmental assets that each kid needs to be successful. The more assets a child has the less likely they are to engage in risky behaviors. Episode 001 – Raising Our City: Introduction talks more about this information and explains why these assets are so important.
From there, each episode is guided by a specific developmental asset. These assets can range from internal assets a child needs, like having a high value on equality and social justice, to external assets such as having positive adult role models in their life. Episode 009 – Raising Our City: Social Justice, brings in perspectives from Sarah Weisbarth, Director of Discover You at the Rock
Center for Youth Development and Jill Wright, Senior Facilitator for Our Community Listens, on how to talk to kids about diversity, equity, and inclusion. Young people need to develop strong guiding values or principles to help them make healthy life choices. When they place a high value on promoting equality they have more empathy and acceptance for others. Sarah and Jill discuss ways we can help promote acceptance of others, valuing opinions that differ than ours, and how to teach youth these same skills.
The Legacy Center for Community Success, the organization that created the podcast, aims to help people reach their full potential. Often times drugs and alcohol can get in the way of that. Sprinkled into the podcast are episodes focused on youth substance use prevention. Episode 010: Raising Our City: But What Do I Say? talks about the importance of setting clear expectations with your kids about drugs and alcohol and how to start those conversations. The episode features a mom and daughter talking about their relationship, how each of them felt about these conversations from their own perspective, and tips and tricks that could work for your child. In addition to this episode, there are various episodes that talk about specific substances, such as nicotine and vaping. Episode 004 – Get Your Head Out of the Clouds brings in Midland High students Marlee Bone and Taylor Sanborn to talk about what they are seeing at the high school level, the impacts of nicotine at their school, and what a group of students did to help support their classmates. Barb Swierzbin, Prevention Specialist at The Legacy, is there to catch up listeners up on what vaping is, the impacts of vaping on the body, and what resources are available in Midland County to help students quit.
To help you navigate through the podcast, the episodes that start with “Raising Our City” will focus on a certain developmental asset while the rest of them will be tied to a certain substance specific topic. The episodes are the perfect length, 25-35 minutes, to listen to in the car on the way to pick up the kids, run errands, or on a family drive up north.
You can find the podcast on any major platform, such as Apple, Google, Spotify, and SoundCloud. Episodes launch every first Monday of the month, but to make sure you don’t miss it, make sure to subscribe! To learn more about the podcast or The Legacy Center for Community Success you can find us on Facebook, Instagram, or on our website.