Meee in a Family Minute
Family Support
Sid Madge is the author of ‘Meee in a Family Minute’ and founder of The Meee Programme. In 2009, Sid chose to relocate from London to a remote corner in North Wales and build a new business. Running a workshop at a local school, Sid was shocked by the self-esteem of the students. Asked to describe themselves, 15% used terms such as ‘freak’, ‘weirdo’ and ‘misfit’. He felt urged to take action, and the Meee Programme was born.
His first book, ‘Meee in a Minute – 60 ways to improve your life in 60 seconds’ has become a best-seller. It recognises and affirms the work of the Meee Programme, which encourages everyone to recognise and believe in their abilities. More and more in these unprecedented times, we are looking to rebalance our family lives and relationships. Could ‘Meee in a Family Minute’ provide some family support and do just that?
Balancing Act
I was sent an email in June asking if I would like to improve my work-life balance. Now, anyone who knows me knows that I am passionate about family life and about wellbeing. So it immediately grabbed my attention. ’60 Ways to Improve Your Family Life in 60 Seconds’ is the third in the series of ‘Meee in a Minute’ books from Sid Madge.
I was very lucky to be gifted a copy of the book, and I have to say, as soon as I began reading, I knew this book was special. I struggled to put down, but the fantastic thing is that each chapter literally takes less than a minute to read. Therefore, you can make small changes with immediate effect. As with everything, rather than try to change lots at once, we need to walk before we run. The book is full of useful tips and strategies to help with family support. To help engage with, enjoy and reconnect. So as I read through, I marked the chapters I wanted to bring to our family life. I then narrowed it down to my Top 5, which I am determined to work on over the summer with us all.
As with everything, rather than try to change lots at once, we need to walk before we run. The book is full of useful tips and strategies to help with family support. To help engage with, enjoy and reconnect. So as I read through, I marked the chapters I wanted to bring to our family life. I then narrowed it down to my Top 5, which I am determined to work on over the summer with us all.
Our Top 5 Actions To Take
- Cut down on screen time – From Home School to Lockdown, it has increased the whole family’s screen time exponentially. The holidays and relaxation in lockdown gave us the chance to cut back on our screen time as a family, but it’s hard not to fall back into the same old routine.
- Family Values – This is something really important to me, and I want the boys to have something visual, to reaffirm those values daily.
- Read Aloud to your kids – Cutting down on screen time allows us time to start reading more, too. The older boys and I have a stack of books to get through this summer. But for Samuel with his Dyslexia, it’s not so easy. Reading aloud to him will hopefully give him that love of reading and encourage him with his reading.
- Play Together – We cracked on with this last night after ordering more shuttlecocks (Daisy keeps eating them). The Badminton tournament is going strong. Just seeing all the boys playing out in the garden happily together was lovely. After tea, Monopoly came out, and a request for UNO to be played tonight! A great start,
- Be The Change – I think being stuck at home has made me more aware of how my personal behaviour affects the boys. My anxiety about lockdown has poured over into angry outbursts and a feeling of loss of control. In Sam, I can see some of those traits in him. I need to be the change…
‘Little Bible of Goodness’
This Pocket-sized book is jam-packed full of actionable family support to enable you to use now, or simply to read through and realise that, actually, even in the madness of lockdown, you are doing a good job! But we should never stop learning, just as our children don’t. This book is perfect for those times when you are a little unsure. When you know you want to make a change or help, but aren’t quite sure how to do it best. Or one of your kids needs a little more support. From chapters on ‘Family Time’ or ‘Don’t Take it Personally’ to ‘No Regrets’ or ‘Never Criticise’, it really does manage to cover everything. I would thoroughly recommend and have just ordered the previous two books in the series.
If you are interested in learning more about the Programme and what it can do for you, your colleagues, or students, then please check it out. Fascinating read…
I’ll keep you posted on how our small changes go over the next few weeks. I’d love to hear if you read and what you think. Or what you’d love to develop within your family this summer! Comment below.
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