Dr. Shimi Kang, author of The Dolphin Way: A Parent’s Guide to Raising Healthy, Happy, and Motivated Kids-Without Turning into a Tiger, advocates these seven guiding principles of parenting the Dolphin Way.
In her upcoming book The Dolphin Way: A Parent’s Guide to Raising Healthy, Happy, and Motivated Kids-Without Turning into a Tiger (Tarcher, Penguin May 2014), Dr. Shimi Kang advocates parenting the Dolphin Way. These are the seven guiding princples.
1) All parents love their children, but not all are bonded to their children. Bonding means seeing and knowing your children for who they really are as individuals. Dolphin parents know that the most 
effective and powerful parenting tool is a strong bond.
2) Dolphin parents have the highest of expectations for our children and we intend to guide them towards health, happiness, and success.
3) Dolphin parents are not controlling Tiger parents, nor are we permissive spineless Jellyfish. We recognize we are authority figures and use guidance, role modeling, and a balanced lifestyle to ensure the development of internal motivation and independence.
4) Dolphin parents do not live in fear of modern day pressures and we do not over-gather, over-protect, and over-compete. We believe life is a journey through ever-changing waters and use P.O.D. to navigate the challenges and opportunities of an evolving 21st century.
5) Dolphin parents know that health always comes first and thus we make a balanced lifestyle a priority. We do not compromise health for anything.
6) Dolphin parents are holistic in our parenting. We look inward for answers and use our parental instincts but we also we seek knowledge and learn from others.
7) Dolphin parents value IQ, EQ and especially CQ. CQ is the integration of IQ and EQ and are the core 21st century skills of creativity, communication, collaboration, and critical thinking – all needed to constantly adapt for lifelong health, happiness, and success.
Dr. Shimi Kang is a Harvard-trained physician and one of a few experts in the field of neuroscience, psychology, and day to day reality of human motivation. She’s currently the medical director for Child and Youth Mental Health for the city of Vancouver and a Clinical Associate Professor at the Unviersity of British Columbia.
