Today’s teens are growing up in a world that looks dramatically different than it did even a decade ago—but have the principles they need to thrive really changed?
In this episode of Change Starts Here, Dustin sits down with Sean Covey, President of FranklinCovey Education and bestselling author of The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens, for a candid conversation about what today’s young people need most from the adults in their lives.
Drawing from his experience raising eight children, Sean shares hard-won lessons about connection, confidence, and knowing when to step back and let kids find their own way. He also takes us behind the scenes of The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens: A Graphic Novel, sharing how his own family experiences shaped the story, why timeless principles still resonate with today’s teens, and why the way we deliver those principles needs to evolve.
Whether you’re a parent, educator, or school leader, this is a conversation you won’t want to miss.
Get Sean’s newest book, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens: A Graphic Novel:
https://www.amazon.com/Habits-Highly-Effective-Teens-Graphic/dp/1668024926/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0
Host: Dustin Odham
Guest: Sean Covey, President of FranklinCovey Education
Timestamps:
00:00 Cold open: hope for teens
00:34 Welcome to Change Starts Here
03:40 What humbled Sean as a parent
06:47 Trust, discipline, and apology
09:34 Why love is spelled time
11:20 Making time for one-on-one moments
15:48 Sharpening the saw in Moab
18:06 Modeling honesty over teaching it
21:07 How today's teens are different
24:11 Screen time, comparison, and mental health
26:09 What teens need most
29:26 Bringing the habits to life in a graphic novel
34:11 Victoria's story and the hope behind the habits
39:21 Using the book with your family
43:33 Raising free range chickens
46:03 The Leader in Me and the power of affirmation
48:26 Closing thoughts
