It's Independence Day — and while we're celebrating freedom, here's a question worth sitting with: how independent is your teen, actually? Not "can they light a sparkler without supervision." Do they manage their own time? Follow through without six reminders? Handle disappointment without falling apart? If the honest answer is "not really yet," you're in good company. Real independence isn't a milestone teens hit one day — it's a set of skills. And skills can be taught.

If you're parenting a teenager with executive functioning challenges, chances are you've fallen into one of two camps — the parent who takes over and does everything, or the one who tells their teen exactly what to do and gets frustrated when it doesn't work. Neither approach is wrong, but neither is setting your teen up for real independence. The good news? There's a sweet spot in the middle — and it starts with thinking like a coach.