Welcome to a special bonus episode of The Growth Kit! Today's episode is brought to you by a very special guest, my 6-year-old nephew Flynn.

Flynn and my sister have been on quite a journey, learning and growing alongside Laura Petix, also known as the OT Butterfly. Laura is an occupational therapist specializing in the field of neurodiversity, and she's the author of the insightful book "A Kid's Book About Neurodiversity." Flynn himself falls under the umbrella of neurodiversity, and as the biggest fan of my MindBodyDad blog and this podcast, he had a great idea to interview Laura himself. So, without further ado, I present to you Flynn's interview with Laura Petix.

If you have a kid, you have a parenting style that fits into one of four boxes: authoritative, authoritarian, permissive, or uninvolved.

These styles date back to the 1960’s when the psychologist Diana Baumrind first identified three of them (authoritative, authoritarian, and permissive), and then the psychologists Maccoby and Martin added a fourth style, neglectful or uninvolved parenting, in the 1980s.

Baumrind’s theory has been heavily researched and widely accepted and has helped to shape our understanding of the different ways in which parents can influence the development and well-being of our children.

Through this research, there is one style that stands above the rest: the authoritative parenting style. Time and time again, this style is linked to great parents based on the strong outcomes of their kids. The good news is that your parenting style isn’t fixed. While it will take effort to modify behaviors and maybe even your relationship with your kids, you have the opportunity to change.

Read the breakdown, identify your style, and strive to raise better kids.