Challenge Accepted is a new limited podcast series from Good Inside and Hot Wheels. Created for parents who want to raise resilient kids, this series explores the early experiences that shape who we become - and the mindset it takes to keep pushing forward. This is Episode 1 of 4.

What if confidence isn’t believing you’ll succeed, but knowing you’ll survive it if you don’t? Kellie Gerardi grew up near Kennedy Space Center dreaming of space, with no obvious way to get there. She had no military background, wasn’t on a test-pilot track, and her parents had no background in science. She left Earth anyway, flying in November 2023 as a researcher on a Virgin Galactic science mission.

Dr. Becky digs into what happened early in Kellie’s life that made “I can figure this out” possible. It started with parents who took her interests seriously without promising her anything. Then came a kindergarten meltdown over reading an analog clock that changed how she handled failure. And it shows up now in why she lets her daughters watch her be bad at things (ever tried weekly improv?). They also talk about how her scientist’s mindset helped her through years of secondary infertility, and how to assess when quitting is actually the right call.

Stay tuned for coming episodes of Challenge Accepted, featuring Olympic bobsledder Elana Meyers Taylor; New York Liberty forward Breanna Stewart; and YouTuber, engineer, and inventor Mark Rober.

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Thank you to Hot Wheels for making this episode possible.

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Every parent asks their kid some version of the same question: “Who's your best friend?” Adam Grant thinks that's the wrong thing to be asking, at any age.

His new book Vibe breaks friendship into four types: pals, allies, companions, and associates. Most of us assume we need one person who's all four. Grant's research says that's a setup for disappointment, and that kids who are genuinely well-liked at school still feel excluded and isolated if they don't have one "bestie."

Dr. Becky and Adam get into why it takes about 50 hours, on average, to make a friend (and up to 200 to make a close one), why a scary hike or a rough IKEA build can bond people faster than anything easy, and why the person who reacts the biggest in your house usually ends up running it.

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Thank you to Yoto for making this episode possible. Get 15% off your order with the code DRBECKY15 at YotoPlay.com. New customers only, ends October 31, offer valid on select products only. Terms apply.

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We spend too much time making sure our boys know the right answer, and not enough time helping them build the emotional skills to act on it when the stakes are high.

“Should you respect someone’s no?” Yes.
“Should you speak up when something bad is happening?” Yes.

Our kids can ace that test.

Now add rejection. Add wanting to belong. Add: “If I say something, my friends might turn on me.”

Knowing the right answer isn’t the same as being able to act on it when the moment gets hard.

In this episode, a special recording of a live event with the Good Inside community in response to recent headlines about sexual assault, Dr. Becky shares three emotional skills we can start building in our boys today. These aren’t everything - sexual violence is not an individual parenting problem, and it won’t have an individual parenting solution. But these aren't nothing, either. They're some things we can do now, long before the stakes get higher.

Read Dr. Becky’s notes on this episode on the Good Inside blog.

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