FB Posting on Dec 30th 2025
“You might’ve seen this video earlier this year, when I guest lectured at my alma mater, Duke University, in @aarondinin’s class and talked about the thing people miss most when it comes to managing frustration and taking on hard tasks. It was one of my favorite moments, and the response from you all was so meaningful that I wanted to bring it back here – whether you’re seeing it for the first time or could use the reminder as you head into the new year.
Building resilience isn’t pretty. It’s messy, hard, and it relies on learning how to tolerate frustration.
Frustration tolerance is one of life’s most essential skills. The more we can tolerate frustration, the more we can learn, the more we can struggle, the more we can take on challenges, the more we can bounce back from failure.
Our goal as a parent is not to get our kids from not knowing to knowing as fast as possible. Our job is to teach our kids how to tolerate the space in between. If you do this exercise with your kid today, then the next time they get frustrated you’ll be able to say, “Oh yeah you’re in that Learning Space! This space is frustrating and I know you can handle it.”
– Dr Becky Kennedy, Founder & CEO of Good Inside Co.
Dr. Rebecca Kennedy is an American clinical psychologist who is founder and chief executive officer of the Good Inside company, an online parenting advice service. She has been called the “millennial parent whisperer” by Time magazine. Her book Good Inside was a number one New York Times bestseller.