#98 - 17 Years Teaching, Now Raising Confident Kids: Why "I Don't Know" Is Powerful Parenting- Alyssa Smith

Alyssa Smith spent 17 years teaching other people's kids across America and Korea.

Then she had her own. And everything she thought she knew about parenting? She had to unlearn it.

Now she's a coach helping parents in life transitions raise resilient kids with voice & choice.

Here's what's powerful about Alyssa's story: she stopped performing the "expert parent" and started showing up as the "learner beside."

She models inquiry, not authority. She says "I don't know" when she doesn't know. She apologises when she messes up.

In this episode:

Why "learner beside" beats expert parent every time.

How gentle parenting without boundaries creates resentful

mothers and entitled kids.

Teaching voice and choice through everyday moments (blue hair, curly hair comments, task ownership).

Cultivating joy when you're running on fumes—it's intentional work, not something that just happens.

Why modelling growth matters more than performing perfection.

We've been told good parents have all the answers. What if that pressure is actually making us worse at this?

Your kids don't need you to be perfect. They need to watch you figure it out.

Works in progress raising other works in progress.