How do we prepare ourselves or help prepare our kids to get ready for independent adulthood? This episode is a good one for older teens/young adults or parents of kids in that age range. I talk about my Ready for Adulthood Checklist and how to identify and start learning skills needed to thrive as an adult.

Download the Ready for Adulthood Checklist by entering your email here.

Read more about raising thriving adults in my book, Happy Campers: 10 Summer Camp Secrets for Raising Independent, Capable Kids Who Become Thriving Adults.

Do I matter? It's a small question with a lot behind it—for our kids and for us.

Feeling noticed, valued, and needed can shape how we experience our families, friendships, workplaces, and communities. In this episode, Sara Kuljis & I talk about the book Mattering: The Secret to a Life of Deep Connection & Purpose, by Jennifer Breheny Wallace.

We explore the idea of mattering and how everyday interactions can help us communicate one of the most meaningful messages we can offer: You matter, and your presence makes a difference.

Happy Campers: 10 Summer Camp Secrets for Raising Independent, Capable Kids Who Become Thriving Adults

How to get Closer to your Kid in 5 Minutes a Day

[Encore] Ep. 121: The Power of Showing Up with Dr. Tina Payne Bryson

Helping your child or adolescent build the skills to have strong friendships now will lead to the positive relationships they need to have a happy, thriving adult life.

Download the free Social Skills Checklist by entering your name and email here.

"The great news is that we know our kids better than anyone else does, and most of us have a lot of experience in social situations. We have experienced social successes and failures throughout our lives and have learned and honed our own social skills. Therefore, we are the ideal guides for our children in the area of social skills and relationships. We are their ideal "friendship coaches."
-Happy Campers Secret #9: Coach Kids to Better Friendships

Links
Happy Campers (Revised & Expanded 2026 Edition)

Do you want to feel less stressed and rushed? In this episode, Sara Kuljis & I reflect on what we're seeing in the kids and families who come through our summer camps. We talk about the decisions and struggles we experienced balancing our own and our kids' schedules when raising our now-adult kids. Download the free Family Pace & Space Worksheet by entering your name and email here.

In Happy Campers: 10 Summer Camp Secrets for Raising Independent, Capable Kids Who Become Thriving Adults, I share about Sara's workshop & resource, Family Pace & Space, in Secret #7: Kids Thrive With Structure.

Links
Happy Campers (Revised & Expanded 2026 Edition)

Challenge Success "PDF"- Playtime, Downtime, Family Time
The Midnight Train, Matt Haig
Halftime: Moving from Success to Significance, Bob P. Buford

Quotes
"Sometimes you have to choose." Audrey

"Choosing between good options is a life skill." Sara

"If the pace feels good, if you're all getting enough rest, if you have enough time together, then it's fine." Audrey

In the final episode of the Tough Twenties series, Gretchen (age 30), Owen (age 20), and I have a conversation about building identity capital in your twenties and how various experiences, whether professional or personal, shape our stories and can influence future opportunities.

Owen shares his experience as a beach lifeguard, which, although unrelated to his planned career path, provided him with valuable life skills and discipline. Gretchen, nearing the end of her doctoral program, discusses how her camp counseling experience has been instrumental in her teaching career and her current research.

We also touch on the impact technology and social media are having on our lives. Both Owen and Gretchen share steps they've taken to manage their screen time, recognizing the importance of being present in the moment and the potential negative effects of excessive phone use. They share strategies such as deleting apps, setting screen time limits, and creating phone-free times during the day.

The conversation highlights the importance of being mindful of our social media usage and the displacement effect it can have on our lives. The time we spend on screens is time we're not spending doing other important things - like building closer relationships and learning new skills. We also discuss the potential future of parenting in relation to technology and the importance of modeling healthy habits for the next generation.

During this series, we've reflected on the challenges and rewards of the twenties and have emphasized the importance of embracing this decade as an important developmental time of growth and learning.

I hope this series has provided encouragement and guidance for young adults navigating their own winding paths.

Do you enjoy Sunshine Parenting? Please take a moment to give my podcast a rating and review on iTunes.

Listen to more episodes from the Tough Twenties series.

Thank you for being part of the Sunshine Parenting community!

Audrey "Sunshine" Monke

In the Tough Twenties series, I'm interviewing young adults, answering questions submitted by listeners, and sharing resources and tips related to thriving in young adulthood and beyond. Whether you're an adolescent or a young adult in your twenties, or you're parenting a young adult, I know you'll be encouraged by this series.

Meg Jay, PhD

In this episode, I chat with Meg Jay, PHD, a developmental clinical psychologist who specializes in twentysomethings. She is the author of The Twentysomething Treatment: A Revolutionary Remedy for an Uncertain Age, Supernormal: The Secret World of the Family Hero and the cult classic The Defining Decade: Why Your Twenties Matter and How to Make the Most of Them Now. Her books have been translated into more than a dozen languages and her work has appeared in the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Harvard Business Review and on NPR, BBC and—maybe most important for her audience—TikTok.

We discuss the positive impact The Defining Decade has had on thousands of young adults as well as a few topics covered in the book, including building "identity capital."

Get in touch

Submit an anonymous question or comment for the series

Resources

Download my "Ready for Adulthood Checklist"

The Defining Decade: Why Your Twenties Matter — And How to Make the Most of Them Now

In the Tough Twenties series, I'm interviewing young adults, answering questions submitted by listeners, and sharing resources and tips related to thriving in young adulthood and beyond. Whether you're an adolescent or a young adult in your twenties, or you're parenting a young adult, I know you'll be encouraged by this series.

In this episode, I chat with summer camp directors Andy and Alison Moeshberger. Each year they interview, hire, and train two hundred young adult counselors, so they have a lot of great insights on the skills and traits that lead to success at work for young adults.

We discuss:

The benefits of working at a summer camp, such as gaining responsibility, decision-making skills, and leadership opportunities. They also discuss the accelerated learning opportunities, the rapid feedback system, and the development of relationship skills due to the face-to-face communication and round-the-clock community and communication.

The importance of being coachable, be receptive to feedback and view feedback as an opportunity for improvement rather than a personal attack.

How the best employees are flexible, open minded, and willing to work through the discomfort of challenges and learning new skills.

The mindset shift that young adults need to make when transitioning from a school environment to a professional setting. They note that in school, competition and high grades are often emphasized, whereas in the working world, soft skills and relational skills are most valued.

Overall, they emphasize the benefits of working at a summer camp, such as the accelerated learning opportunities, rapid feedback system, and development of soft skills.

Get in touch

Submit an anonymous question or comment for the series

Resources

Download my "Ready for Adulthood Checklist"

Mentioned on the Podcast

The Defining Decade: Why Your Twenties Matter -- And How to Make the Most of Them Now

3 Reasons to Choose a Job at Camp Instead of a Summer Internship

Why Being a Camp Counselor is the Best Summer Job

The Greatest Internship: 6 Critical Skills Counselors Develop at Camp