A story every parent needs to hear

Today I want to share a true story that illustrates exactly how a parent’s wiring and a child’s wiring can clash without either person meaning any harm.

The names have been changed to protect their privacy.
But the moment is real.
And it's something almost every parent has lived through one way or another.

A mom named Carla was walking her seven-year-old son, Mason, to school.
The school was only a few blocks away, and they had a simple routine:
leave the house, stay on the sidewalk, and arrive on time.

Carla, a Protector Parent, valued structure, safety, and predictability.
Routines helped her feel calm and grounded.
She liked knowing what would happen next.

Mason, however, was an Explorer Child.
Curious. Hands-on. Easily captivated by anything interesting happening around him.

Halfway down the block, Mason stopped walking.
He spotted a groundhog waddling across a neighbor’s lawn and froze in amazement.
Then he drifted off the sidewalk, crouched down, and whispered, “Mom, look. He’s right there.”

To Mason, this was wonder.
To Carla, this was panic.

They were already running behind.
Her chest tightened.
Her mind rushed ahead to everything that could go wrong.
Being late. Missing the bell. Getting a call from the school.

She snapped, “Mason, stop wandering off. We don't have time for this. Walk now!”

Mason shut down instantly.
His shoulders slumped.
His steps became slower, not faster.

Carla felt guilty, frustrated, and confused.
She loved her son deeply, yet the morning walk always ended this way.
A tug-of-war between her sense of urgency and his sense of discovery.

Two different worlds.
Two different wirings.
Both trying their best.

This is the moment where most parents say,
“Why can’t you just listen? We're going to be late.”

But I want you to pause and ask the question that transforms everything:

What is this child experiencing right now?

Mason wasn't trying to delay the morning.
He wasn't ignoring instructions.
He wasn't being careless or defiant.

He was being himself.
An Explorer Child whose brain lights up when he sees something interesting.
A child who connects with the world through movement, curiosity, and direct experience.

The groundhog did not represent disobedience.
It represented wonder, excitement, and discovery.

Meanwhile, Carla’s urgency didn't represent anger.
It represented responsibility, structure, and her desire to keep life running smoothly.

Once she learned Mason’s wiring, she stopped fighting it.
Instead of rushing him every morning, she built space for spontaneous moments into their walk.

They left the house five minutes earlier.
She gave him “two discovery stops” on the way.
If something caught his eye, she knelt down with him instead of pulling him forward.

And the conflict disappeared.

Their mornings became calmer.
Their connection grew stronger.
And Mason still arrived at school on time.

This is why personality matters.
This is why wiring matters.
This is why proactive parenting begins with understanding the invisible patterns beneath your child’s behavior.

Tomorrow, I'll show you what happens when parents try to raise a child without a plan that matches their wiring.
It's the number one reason parenting becomes confusing or exhausting, even for loving parents with good intentions.

Talk to you soon,
Devin Trent