Recent Posts

book cover of Lost in Thought by Zena Hitz

Book Review: Lost in Thought: The Hidden Pleasures of an Intellectual Life by Zena Hitz

A good life means you don't work for the sake of work—you work for the sake of leisure. But what is leisure? What are the benefits of reading, studying, or thinking for its own sake?
three kids on a giant seesaw made from a pine log

Forest School, Books and Crafts: Reflections on Our Homeschooling Year (2023-2024)

What does education look like when you're always learning? Here's what my kids and I have been doing this year—books, crafts, forest school, and more!
a pile of five notebooks

Journaling to Set and Achieve Writing Goals

When I was a foil fencer, I kept a meticulous journal to track progress, practice, and goals. Now, here's how I'm applying what I learned to writing.
the cover of Changing our Minds by Naomi Fisher

Book Review: Changing Our Minds: How Children Can Take Control of Their Own Learning by Naomi Fisher

Different kids need different learning environments; they're interested in different topics; they thrive on different tasks. So why force them to learn the same things in the same ways at the same times in schools?
orange and black butterfly with wings open resting on the surface of water with ripples going out around it

A DIY Future: How to Discover Options and Effect Change

How bad do things have to get before you try to change them? How do you figure out that change is even possible, and build up the inertia to act?
four young women leaping up in the air with their arms stretched out like stars, on a beach with glassy water in the background

How Autonomy Will Help You Flourish

Most people don't have enough autonomy. They feel controlled, like they don't have much choice in how their life goes. Here's why that matters and how you can get more autonomy—and a better life.
desks lined up in a classroom

Schools Zap Kids' Motivation and Mental Health

Intrinsic motivation is the key to discipline, excellence, and happiness. But schools stamp out intrinsic motivation. Is it ever a good idea to send your kids to a conventional school?
the cover of the book Start With Why by Simon Sinek

Book Review: Start With Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action by Simon Sinek

'People don't buy WHAT you do, they buy WHY you do it.' This fast-paced marketing and business book will help you better understand and brand yourself and your company. What is your WHY?
five martial artists in dramatic lighting, each kicking or jumping or holding up fists

How to Level Up At Anything: Using Science to Approach Mastery

When you're not improving in your skills or craft, you're miserable. We all need a sense of progression and competence in our work. Here's how to efficiently improve—using intentional practice and outside input.
the cover of the book Get It Done by Ayelet Fishbach

Book Review: Get It Done: Surprising Lessons from the Science of Motivation by Ayelet Fishbach

If you want to know how motivation works and how to set better goals, achieve more, procrastinate less, and sustain your motivation through the long haul, this book is for you.
a three-year-old girl with her hair pulled back in a ponytail looks down intently as she draws on paper with an orange marker

What is Motivation? Two Theories You Can Use to Understand and Manipulate Your Motivation

Motivation is why you do what you do. If you understand how motivation works, you can better understand the people around you, and importantly, you can better manipulate your own motivation to get more done.
the face of an analog clock

How to Procrastinate Less by Increasing Your Motivation and Decreasing Temptations

We all procrastinate. It's a problem, because then we're not doing the things we know we ought to do. By using the science of motivation and self-discipline, we can learn to procrastinate less and get more done!
a barn owl looking directly at you

What You Gain From 2 Years of Writing a Weekly Blog (5 Key Lessons)

What makes writing a blog worth it—especially when you're starting out and traffic is low? How do you analyze your content, build an audience, and keep up the motivation to write every week?
Three young children with their backs to the camera coloring with chalk pastels on large pieces of cardboard

A New Interest-Led Learning Initiative: North Idaho Sudbury Co-op

We're attending a new homeschool co-op on a local farm. It follows an interest-led learning or self-directed education philosophy. So what does that mean? And how does it play out in practice?
Four furry robots sitting around a wooden table inset with a tablet. From left to right, a red dragonbot, a blue dragonbot, a teddy bear robot, and a green dragonbot.

Why I Went to Graduate School

Ten years ago, I started grad school at the MIT Media Lab. Why'd I attend? Because it was going to be fun. Here's how I made that decision, and why you should consider the fun factor in your own decision-making.
book cover of Hunt, Gather, Parent by Michaeleen Doucleff

Book Review: Hunt, Gather, Parent: What Ancient Cultures Can Teach Us About the Lost Art of Raising Happy, Helpful Little Humans by Michaeleen Doucleff

How can we better help children develop helpfulness, responsibility, confidence, independence, and emotional control?
book cover of Drive by Daniel Pink

Book Review: Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us by Daniel H. Pink

Without external rewards and punishments, people wouldn't do much. Or would they? People are actually driven toward autonomy, competence, and relatedness.
two magnolia blossoms open in soft sunlight

How to Build Self-Discipline: Why Awareness and Intrinsic Motivation Are Key

Self-discipline is the ability to do what needs to be done, to stay in control, to accomplish your goals. How do you build discipline? Here are strategies I use.
toddler sitting on a brick path by a lawn looking sideways, holding a large green pushbroom

Cooperation without Coercion: How to Motivate Children (5 Things to Try)

What do you do when your strong-willed child won't cooperate? Children love cooperating... but they also love showing their independence. Here are 5 things to try.
the cover of the book The Self-Driven Child by William Stixrud and Ned Johnson

Book review: The Self-Driven Child: The Science and Sense of Giving Your Children More Control Over Their Lives by William Stixrud and Ned Johnson

Why responsibility and a sense of control are critical for children.

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About

We're Jacqueline and Randy, a blogging duo with backgrounds in tech, robots, art, and writing, now raising our family in northern Idaho.

Our goal is to encourage deliberate choices, individual responsibility, and lifelong curiosity by sharing stories about our adventures in living, loving, and learning.

Learn more about us.


Connect:

whoo@deliberateowl.com

Start here

Curious about our life and journey? Here are some good places to start reading:

Jacqueline and Randy leaning their heads together smiling at the camera

A Blog About Education, Lifestyles, and Community

A brief history of how the Deliberate Owl came to be and why we're writing a blog about us, our lives, and how we're living out our values.
Priests in red and gold celebrate a traditional Latin Mass

Discovering the Traditional Catholic Mass

How I discovered the traditional Latin Mass a few years ago, why that discovery changed everything for me, and what was wrong with the Novus Ordo Masses I'd attended.