Don't Be The Frog
Inspired by on Lenny's Podcast
The frog doesn't notice the water getting hotter one degree at a time - and neither will you when bedtime creep has turned 7pm into 9:30.
Ada Chen Rekhi uses a gory metaphor for career stagnation that applies perfectly to parenting drift.
'If you take a frog and you throw in a pot of boiling water, it'll jump out. But if you take a frog and you put in a pot and you increase the temperature degree by degree by degree, the frog doesn't notice and before it knows, it's boiled alive.'
She's talking about careers, but every parent knows this feeling. Bedtime was 7pm. Then it was 'just 10 more minutes.' Then there was one more book. Then water. Then another trip to the bathroom. Now it's 9:30 and you're wondering how you got here.
Screen time started at 20 minutes. Tantrums started at 'occasional.' The picky eating started with 'just not hungry tonight.'
'You really have to be aware of your surroundings. You have to be aware of which way is the direction of the temperature of the water trending.'
The frog can't feel the heat rising. But you can notice. Check the thermostat occasionally.
PM Theme: Situational awareness and metrics
Parenting Theme: Preventing gradual boundary erosion
“If you take a frog and you throw in a pot of boiling water, it'll jump out. But if you take a frog and you put in a pot and you increase the temperature degree by degree by degree, the frog doesn't notice and before it knows, it's boiled alive.”Ada Chen Rekhi · 00:32:45
“You really have to be aware of your surroundings. You have to be aware of which way is the direction of the temperature of the water trending.”Ada Chen Rekhi · 00:33:02
