24. Parenting in a Petri Dish: Raising Independent Kids When the System Falls Short w/My Wife Tessa Osborne

17 snips

Jun 5, 2025

In this insightful conversation, Tessa Osborne, Board of Directors member at Innovate Academy and founder of Family Foundations Camp, shares her unique approach to parenting. She emphasizes the importance of raising self-sufficient and financially literate kids amid societal challenges. Tessa discusses the need for hands-on life skills and the value of sibling interactions in fostering resilience. They also touch on the significance of intergenerational connections and the vital role of storytelling in developing identity, proving that intentional parenting can lead to independent, happy children.

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INSIGHT

Dangers of Helicopter Parenting

Helicopter parenting avoids all pain but creates emotionally unstable kids.
Children need to face problems to develop resilience and independence.

INSIGHT

Grandparents' Evolutionary Role

Humans uniquely rely on multigenerational interdependence for survival and knowledge transfer.
Grandparents play a vital evolutionary role in passing down culture and supporting families.

ANECDOTE

Grandmothers Impact School Community

Tessa brought grandmothers into school to support kids and combat elder isolation.
This boosted purpose for elderly and created a loving multi-generational environment.

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The parenting playbook is changing. Raising independent children has only gotten harder as family units drift apart, grandparents remain out of the picture, schools fail to teach financial literacy for kids, and overprotective helicopter parenting becomes the new norm. But just because society is heading in one direction, doesn’t mean your family has to as well. We’re proof of that, with four independent, high-achieving children raised by us, not society.

Who is “we”? Today, I brought my better half, Tessa, to the show. Tessa is on the Board of Directors at Innovate Academy, founded the Family Foundations Camp, and is author of the upcoming (hold her to that!) book Parenting in a Petri Dish. Tessa spends all day, every day, thinking about how we can create better futures with our children, not just for them. This “petri dish” parenting is the playbook we use to raise our children to be self-sufficient, financially savvy, and compassionate, caring individuals.

Has the system failed us as parents? You probably already know the answer. So how do we take control of our kids’ cultivation? Simple: practice life skills at home! But how? Today, Tessa and I share what we do to raise children we’re proud of, why daughters and sons need different challenges, and why focusing only on outcomes will fail your child in the long run.

Insights from today’s episode:

The “petri dish” style of parenting that leads to successful (and happy) kids
Call your grandparents! Why older generations MUST be included in your kids’ lives
Male vs. female learning patterns and why you should treat your daughters and sons differently
How to “manufacture” challenges in the home that build your kid’s character
Why focusing on outcomes (not skills and habits) is a huge mistake

Family Foundations Camp: https://www.foundationsfamilycamp.com/

Innovate Academy: https://innovatehigh.com/

The Comfort Crisis: https://www.amazon.com/Comfort-Crisis-Embrace-Discomfort-Reclaim/dp/0593138767