12 Pieces of Advice for Young Dads

Patty and I have successfully launched two wonderful children from the nest and we're now enjoying all the benefits of having a great relationship with our kids while at the same time living a very fulfilling life as empty nesters.  Through the years of raising our kids both Patty and I grew by leaps and bounds in how we parented both together as a team as well as separately as father and mother.  I can point to a number of things we did well while there were a few things we could have done things better.  As a father, I learned some very important lessons which I feel are crucial for any dad to be aware of when traveling the child-rearing journey.   So, for all my young dad readers (or someone who knows a young dad), here's my 12 pieces of advice for young dads:

1. Sit down to dinner together at the same time every night with no TV, phones, or other distractions
2. Let your kids see how you love your wife through words and actions
3. Tell your kids you love them just because
4. Put your wife and kids first in what you do - believe me they notice
5. Just like you don't drink and drive, don't discipline when angry
6. Don't use work as an excuse for missing an important event more than 10% of the time
7. When teenagers want to talk, drop everything to listen
8. Take tons of pictures with your kids having fun and being totally goofy.   They love it when you make a fool of yourself and the moment can be preserved forever.
9. Have high expectations, but be their greatest cheerleader
10. Let them know your passions and dreams, but give them the freedom and encouragement to develop their own
11. Create and keep family traditions
12. Don't abdicate your role as leader of the family

Lonnie Pacelli
Keynote Speaker | Board Director | Autism Advocate | Author | Project Management Expert | Microsoft/Accenture Veteran 
See his books on Amazon.