There is no way to be a perfect dad, but there are a million ways to be a really great one. Despite the fact that there is no road map for being a successful dad there are many, many things you can do to make a big difference in your child’s life. I know it sometimes feels as if dads have a thankless task and mom gets all the credit, but our kids need dad’s love just as much as they need mom’s. Dads have a lot of influence on self-esteem and character development in their children. Here are some things great dad never does.
1) Continue to eat quadruple bypass, super burgers, with colossal fries, and milkshakes. To have an influence on your child’s life, you must first of all, be alive. This goes in the same category as
smoking and other known risky behavior such as driving 100 mph down the freeway.
After my daughter Day was born one of the first things I did was schedule a complete physical for myself. Many times dads don’t go to the doctor until we are very sick and are forced to go. This is especially true for single dads; that’s right single dads. I know because I was a single dad for seven years. Many men’s live’s could be saved if we would stop skipping doctor’s visits. Also, check out Livescience
2) That brings me to my second point. Dads should never be so busy that they don’t take time out to spend with their kids. It is vital to spend time with them while they are babies and toddlers, God made them adorable, so cute and huggable. Make sure to make physical contact with them, hold them, hug them, be there for them. When they get older, and they are not as adorable, cute and cuddly as when they were babies you will be very happy that you bonded with them earlier.
3) Dads at the top of their game, never fall into the trap of thinking that they can’t make mistakes. Being king is hard, but teaching kids is a two-way street, we should always be open to learning things from our children. I have learned so much from my kids. I rediscovered how amazing a simple grasshopper is. I saw how spectacular a brilliant, star-studded sky was from a child’s eyes again. One night in the middle of the Rocky Mountains, on a road trip to Kansas City; Day pointed to a sky loaded with stars and said daddy, look at all the stars…
I learned how to slow down, enjoy life and get close to God. There are not many people who can feel God’s presence like a child can. Which brings me back to my original point. Earthly dads make mistakes. Our families depend on us, so dads must be careful not to make major screw-ups, but we’re not perfect. I’ve always liked this quote.
“I’ve missed more than 9000 shots in my career. I’ve lost almost 300 games. 26 times, I’ve been trusted to take the game winning shot and missed. I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.”
4) Number one dads don’t forget that the root of discipline is to teach. One my most essential missions as a father is to teach my children right from wrong. I can’t just smack them on the butt every time they do something wrong. They are much too old for that anyway 15, 15 and 20 years old. You and I must lead by example. We must also lay down a solid foundation when they are young, the main thing they must understand is that they have to listen to us, it’s not optional. If they choose not to follow the house rules or the rules for life I’m teaching them, they must know that without a doubt there will be consequences. One thing that has worked for me is to be generous with encouragement and sparing with criticism and to realize that nobody ever learned anything without making mistakes.
5) We must not limit our children’s goals. If they tell us that they want to be an astronaut when they grow up, who are we to tell them any different? Harry Potter was rejected numerous times before it was published making J.K. Rowling a millionaire, Colonel Sanders of ‘Kentucky Fried Chicken’ fame pitched his famous recipe over a thousand times before it was picked up and promoted. We all know the rest of the story! Had he given up at any time he would have been stuck with his minimal monthly pension. How about Oprah Winfrey who was born to unwed teenage parents in the rural town of Kosciusko, Mississippi, we all know what she has accomplished. Bill Gates was born to upper middle-class parents but look at where he’s at today. In fact, if you set high standards, your kids will rise to meet them. Always be positive and help them to discover their own individual talents. Dads are there to be our children’s safety net, not put limits on how high they climb!
6) Super Dads never neglect Super Mom, mother’s work very hard and one the best things you can do for your kids is to take good care of her. I usually cook once a week, it’s not a much but my wife really appreciates it. That is one day a week she doesn’t have to worry about what her family is going to eat. You don’t have to do that but help your wife. Take her somewhere nice besides on her birthday or some other special occasion. The main thing is to make sure she knows that you love and appreciate her, sometimes all it takes is a hug and a kiss when you see her
I hope that you find this list helpful, I will greatly appreciate any and all advice from my readers. Thanks for stopping by.
[…] I thank God that the road to good general health and longevity isn’t as hard as we sometimes make it out to be. In fact, The Basic Laws of Good Health are pretty simple; click here and read 8 Laws of Health our Creator gave us for good health Those weren’t too bad were they??? Good health is not an accident and the older we get, the more we become aware of our own mortality; another reason to depend on our Creator if the goal is immortality. The 8 laws of health remind of the first rule in my post 6 Things Really Great Dads Never Do. […]