Screens, Family, & Habits w/ Justin Whitmel Earley
The Tech Smart Family
Equipping parents during their child’s academic years to bring learning to daily moments.
The Parenting IQ Podcast is a part of the Christian Parenting Podcast Network. To find practical and spiritual resources to help you grow into the parent you want to be, visit www.christianparenting.org
On today’s episode…
What if the solution to screen-time battles isn’t stricter rules—but better habits? In this episode, Justin Whitmel Earley shares how simple tech routines like “Scripture before screens” can reshape your home and your child’s heart. From screen-free zones to delayed devices, learn how to form habits that prioritize presence, peace, and family connection.
Insights
Screens, Family, & Habits: Reclaiming Your Home from Digital Distraction
Featuring Justin Whitmel Earley on the Parenting IQ Podcast
In a world dominated by screens and overstimulation, Justin Whitmel Earley reminds us that parenting in the digital age is less about rules and more about habits that shape the heart. In this powerful conversation with Dr. Kelly Cagle, Justin draws from his experience as a lawyer, missionary, author, and father of four boys to outline how families can develop intentional rhythms that counteract digital chaos.
The Power of Habits in a Screen-Filled World
Justin shares how a mental health collapse early in his career led him to realize that our habits shape our hearts more than our beliefs alone. You may know the truth in your head, but if your lifestyle is formed by the digital noise of modern life, your emotional and spiritual life will follow.
He introduces the idea that head, heart, and habit must work together — and that spiritual formation is deeply tied to physical routines. His mantra? "You become your habits. And your kids become you."
Family Rhythms That Work
Two of Justin’s most effective household tech habits include:
Scripture Before Screens: Start each morning without reaching for your phone. Even a few moments in the Word or silence can reorient the entire day and keep you from overflowing your stress onto your children.
Defined “No Zones”: Set clear screen-free spaces in your home, like the dinner table and bedrooms. These zones protect connection, creativity, and mental health.
He also encourages families to create their own tech discipleship plan, treating screen use like nutrition: with intention, boundaries, and balance.
Introducing the Hang 10 Movement
Justin and his wife created the Hang10Movement.com — a free resource for parents that outlines 10 practical tech habits:
Wait until 10th grade to introduce smartphones or social media
Establish screen-free zones and times
Build communal accountability with other families
This framework supports a proactive parenting model: not fear-based restriction or hands-off freedom, but intentional apprenticeship — walking alongside your kids as they learn how to live with (not for) technology.
Can Tech Ever Be Good?
Yes, says Justin — but only when used with embodied, relational awareness. He compares screen-based interactions to food:
Some tech is junk food (like TikTok)
Some is a healthy snack (like FaceTiming grandma)
But nothing beats the real meal of in-person connection
The solution? “Push up the ladder of embodiment”: voice memos over texts, calls over DMs, and face-to-face time whenever possible.
For Parents Who Feel Behind
If you’re a parent thinking “I messed this up already,” Justin offers hope:
“It’s never too late to do the right thing.”
You can reset, course-correct, or even walk through new tech boundaries with your child — together. Whether that means removing phones from bedrooms or reading The Common Rule as a family, transformation is possible.
About Justin Whitmel Earley
Justin Whitmel Earley is a lawyer, author and speaker from Richmond, VA.
Most of all, he is a husband to Lauren and a father to his four sons – Whit, Asher, Coulter and Shep.
But he also graduated from the University of Virginia with a degree in English Literature before spending four years in Shanghai, China, teaching and writing. Justin got his law degree from the Georgetown University Law Center and he now runs his own business law practice under the Earley Business Legal. (www.earleybusinesslegal.com)
His book, The Common Rule – Habits of Purpose for an Age of Distraction, was published with InterVarsity Press in 2019. He frequently speaks at businesses, churches and conferences on habits, technology and mental health. (www.thecommonrule.org)
His second book, Habits of the Household – Practicing the Story of God in Everyday Family Rhythms, addresses spiritual formation in ordinary family habits, and was published with Zondervan in 2021. (www.habitsofthehousehold.com)
His third book, Made for People – Why We Drift into Loneliness and How to Fight for a Life of Friendship, explores the arts and habits of friendship and was published with Zondervan in 2023.
For upcoming projects, Justin’s fourth book (but first children’s book!), The Big Mess, is forthcoming with ZonderKidz, to be released in May 2025. His fifth book, The Body Teaches the Soul, will be released with Zondervan in October 2025.
You can learn more about Justin at www.justinwhitmelearley.com.
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HEY THERE! I’M DR. CAGLE… DO YOU NEED HELP WITH CREATING GREAT HABITS???
Parenting is hard work. It requires tons of boundaries, daily consistency, so much awareness, as well as lots of patience, grace, wisdom, and filters. Combine that hefty list with all of life’s demands and others’ voice may become louder than yours in your child’s life, increasing their anxiety, fears, and doubts.
Healthy parenting is about seeing yourself as your child’s #1 teacher, saying the right words (or nothing at all) at the right time, and having the right tools to be intentional and impactful. Guessing your way through life, which is what most parents do, is a recipe for failure, but following the lead of someone who has two decades of research-based information and fully understands the demands of parenthood is a recipe for a full life— for you and your child.
With a PhD in education, I’m here to teach you how to use daily moments are learning opportunities so you raise confident and competent lifelong learners that thrive in an ever-changing world.
Additionally, I offer workshops and keynotes on various topics to parents, educators, students, and business leaders— because the need to understand, support, and empower learners is everywhere..
