Digital Well-being Family Initiatives by Google I Hill Country Homestead

This post was sponsored by Google in partnership with the Forward Influence Network , although technology stewardship and responsible social media usage is very important to our family and all thoughts and conversations with the children are my own.

Prioritizing family time is one of the most important things I do on a daily basis as a mother. On any given day, Brady and I work through requests and query’s from the children for a play date, to attend a sports game or to watch a show and more. The deciding factors include how productive the child in question has been that day, have they been in control of their emotions and personal affairs and most importantly, have they invested in quality family time?

Using the Family Guide created by Google has become a common habit when we have family meetings and casual conversations with our children about devices, content, gaming, technology breaks and responsibility with all of the above. One of the most basic daily guidelines in our household it limiting screen time to make sure everyone is getting outdoors. The Family Guide from Google gives us a basic framework for conversation on topics and the kids are learning to hold themselves accountable by working through the Family Guide exercises. Using these resources together always ends on a positive note because who can argue with Google, right!?

Most of our children either are not old enough for a device yet or share a device with each other or a parent for accountability. When a child feels entitled to privacy with technology, dangerous situations can begin to present themselves. I would encourage anyone on the fence about whether or not their child is old enough or ready for their own personal device to log on to the Family Guide by Google and work through some of the exercises with your children. Google also has a series of videos, tips and quick quizzes to help asses personal relationships with technology and suggestions on how to improve at wellbeing.google.

Self-care is all the rage these days but digital well being is still a new idea for many people. Google wants to partner with every family and help everyone have a balanced relationship with technology. I want to encourage everyone to consider how technology fits into their lives and identify areas where they’d like to have a little more balance. Google is providing tools for families and individuals to reduce distractions, improve their focus, unplug more often or help their families create healthy habits Please visit wellbeing.google to learn more.

To discover more tips and tools like the Family Guide, visit wellbeing.google to find a balance with technology that feels right for the whole family.