Back To School
The first day of school is right around the corner here in Las Vegas. You may have already started school or are in the middle of a school year. Regardless of when you listen to this episode, I want to offer my best advice for the 2025-26 school year. I’ve done this for the past three years.
The 2022-23 school year was episode 039. The advice I shared was:
People are icebergs, everyone has more going on under the surface
Because of that, be kind
Speak up and assert yourself
The 2023-24 school year was episode 072. The advice I shared was:
Allow yourself to fail
Make time every day to disconnect from tech
Remember your worth
The 2024-25 school year episode was 108. The advice I shared was:
Own It:
• Your Responsibilities
• Your Choices
• Your Behavior
If you haven’t heard those episodes yet or need a refresher, I highly recommend listening to them, too. For this 2025-26 school year, here’s my best advice:
Be Present
First, I want you to strive to be present. I think you’d agree with me that kids, teens, AND adults are constantly distracted–by phones, by news, by noise, by numerous sources competing for your attention. We often hear how bad distracted driving is, but distractions are also affecting our focus–not paying attention in school, our productivity–homework/tasks/chores taking longer than they should, our sleep–late night scrolling keeping us awake, our relationships–being in the same room/house but disconnected from people, and our mental health–negative messages bombarding us.
There’s a simple solution to this, but that doesn’t mean it’s easy (if it were, distraction wouldn’t be such a problem for everyone). Whether you’re having family dinner, walking your dog, or hanging out with friends, the simplest way for you to be more present in those moments is to put your phone on Do Not Disturb and set it aside for a little while. Your notifications will still be there when you come back. The reason to put your phone on DND and out of reach is, if your phone is buzzing and in your pocket or on the table next to you, it’s still going to distract you. But with your phone completely silent and out of sight, you’ll be able to be more present with people you care about, enjoy their company and the experience better, and foster greater connection between you.
That simple act of silencing and sidelining your phone will also help you concentrate in school, get your work done more efficiently, get better sleep (which impacts everything), and connect with yourself too. Spending time by yourself without noises or screens distracting you gives you the opportunity to be present with and listen to yourself. You can write out your thoughts and ideas, practice mindfulness, or take some slow breaths to center yourself. I’ve practiced these habits and I know how impactful they can be, remember episode 118 Lessons From Silence? But they wouldn’t have been as effective if I hadn’t first removed my distractions. So whether you’re by yourself, at school, with friends or family, make a habit of putting your phone on DND and setting it aside for a bit, and strive to be present.
Try a Grandma Hobby
My next advice is to try a “Grandma” hobby–here me out. Think of the hobbies a Granny, Nana, or Gam Gam does–crochet, needlepoint, puzzles, scrapbooking, or baking. Or things Grandmas do together like playing cards, board games, and having book clubs. Or doing outdoor activities like gardening and bird-watching. There is a growing number of studies that show Grandma hobbies like those positively impact our lives. One study demonstrated that working with clay using bare hands improved psychological well being. Another study showed knitting made people happier and strengthened their social connections. Another recent study concluded that household gardening is associated with high emotional wellbeing. And another study released just this year found that engaging in heritage/traditional art crafts alleviated anxiety, particularly because participants focused on being present instead of finishing the task. Research shows learning a new skill can improve your memory, that doing hands-on crafts increases your attention, and seeing/hearing birds improves your mental health.
Grandma hobbies can be something you do on your own or with friends. They can be low-stress and more enjoyable because it’s something you want/choose to do (instead of being assigned to do). Grandma hobbies typically offer gratification sooner than playing an instrument or sport would, so you have something to show for it sooner, which gives you a boost as you continue working toward long-term goals. And these activities also give you something else to do besides scroll your phone. So let’s give it a go and try a Grandma hobby.
Get Out of Your Way
My last piece of advice for this school year is to get out of your own way. Sometimes the obstacles that prevent us from taking chances and going for our goals aren’t hurdles we can’t control, but instead are roadblocks we put in our own path. Doubt wonders if we’ve done enough to achieve our goal. Self-consciousness worries about what others will think. Comparison convinces us that others are better than us, so why try. Criticism reminds us how we’ve messed up before, and probably will again. Cruelty tells us we don’t have what it takes. All of that negative self-talk will hold you back and prevent you from pursuing greater things. And then those voices will have even more material to throw in your face, telling you that you were dumb for wanting to try, you’re no good at anything, you should stop trying, you’re hopeless.
I recognize those voices all too well, and I don’t know if they’ll ever leave me alone for good, but I’m not going to wait for that. Because as American poet Suzy Kassem said, “Fear kills more dreams than failure ever will.” You girls have unbelievable potential. It’s humbling for me to know that I am speaking to future executives, researchers, inventors, professional athletes, world leaders, and changemakers. You may not see it yet, but I already do. That’s why I have to give you this advice, so you don’t settle for less than what you are capable of achieving. Like this quote I read on Insta, “Stop booing yourself off stage before anybody had a chance to see you perform.” When those negative self-talk thoughts block your path, I want you to tell them, “Get out of my way!” Say it out loud if you have to. Because you need to clear the way so you can discover and fulfill your purpose. And when you try and fail (because everyone does), you’ll have so much more data to learn from and build on than if you wouldn’t have tried at all. The more you can get out of your way, the more comfortable you will get with taking chances, losing, and failing, and then coming back even stronger having grown from the experience. But first you have to get out of your way.
Just so you know, I’m not just giving YOU girls this advice, I’m going to be practicing it too. I haven’t mastered these things, I may have a few decades of experience on you, but I’m still learning and growing alongside you. So I would love to hear what grandma hobby you try, what changes you notice by being present, and how you get out of your own way.
Best Advice 2025-26 School Year Printable
To help you remember all of this, I created a “Best Advice 2025-26 School Year” poster for you to print out, personalize with your plan, and post on your wall where you’ll see it, remember it, practice it, and believe it — that’s the important part.
Resources
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