Jim Daly

Daly Focus Blog

FOTF logo
  • Home
  • Family & Home
  • Current Events
  • Focus News
  • About

Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff

If you’re a parent and want your household to function smoothly, you’re going to need some rules. Unfortunately, it’s not always easy to know where the lines should be drawn. If you struggle with that, try this: don’t sweat the small stuff.

An idea that helped my wife Jean and me to draw boundaries when our boys were younger was to think of their behavioral problems in terms of “levels.” Eating a cookie before dinner, for example, would be a Level One offense. Lying was far more serious – say, Level Three or Four. The beauty of the system was that it kept Jean and me from treating every issue as an emergency.

But even so, I still needed my boys to remind me from time to time not to take things so seriously. If I got upset over a minor problem, they’d point it out to me. My younger son, Troy, was especially good about reframing my perspective. If he made a small mess in the kitchen and saw my temperature rise, he would remind me that it was no big deal so calmly that I would realize he was right. It wasn’t a big deal.

Over the years, I learned that rules and discipline are important, but they have to be seasoned with patience and humor. When it comes to knowing where to draw the line, don’t sweat the small stuff.

Sign up for the weekly e-newsletter

Topics: Family and Home Tags: marriage August 22, 2022 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Related Posts

  • How Love Styles Can Help You Grow Closer as a Couple
  • Practical Ideas for Loving Your Wife
  • Cracks of Busyness

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Jim-Daly President of Focus on the Family
Jim Daly
with Paul Batura

Listen to Jim’s
New Podcast

ReFocus with Jim Daly

Newsletter Sign Up

Posts by Jim

Healing as a Parent from Childhood Trauma

Finding God’s Peace by Understanding Psalm 23

Where is God in Our Suffering?

Topics

  • Current Events
  • Family and Home
  • Focus Events
  • Uncategorized

Daly Focus

Jim-Daly Jim Daly is a husband, father and President of Focus on the Family and host of its National Radio Hall of Fame broadcast. His blog, Daly Focus, is full of timely commentary and wisdom designed to help you navigate and understand today’s culture. His latest book is Marriage Done Right.

Jim Daly Blog

Home
About
Posting Guidelines
Terms & Conditions
Privacy Policy
FAQs

© 2025 Focus on the Family

Connect with Me

Facebook
X
YouTube