“What’s really important?” “Are we working hard but going in the wrong direction?” “Who’s raising our kids?” “What is success?”
Work or Family: Where Are You Indispensable, Dad?
We shouldn’t feel guilty for being committed to our jobs, but all dads should continue to ask themselves, Where am I most indispensable?
Just Have a Good Time NOW. (See Video)
This short but powerful video "Dad & Me" was contributed to us by Vincenzo Giovannini, who wrote the screenplay. He wrote about this project: We wanted to bring awareness to the importance of being part of your child's life. As technology has progressed and has...
5 Tips to Balance Being Dad
One of the most important things a dad has to learn is balance- balancing work, friends and extracurricular activities with being a husband and father. Here are NCF's top 5 Tips to Balance Being Dad in our weekly Tools for the Journey!
Priorities vs. Lifestyle, and a Really Cool Machine
by Jon Alexander A few years ago, a drawing by my 4-year-old daughter sparked a conversation that would spawn an app, start a business and begin reconciling our lifestyle with our priorities. (See the video below for more on the story.) For most of my professional...
5 Tips for Dads Who Travel
Are you a dad who travels for work? Download our FREE Tools for the Journey: 5 Tips for Dads Who Travel! Five Tips for Dads Who Travel
A 10-Year-Old’s List Becomes a Daddy Wake-Up Call
Have you heard of Mohamed El-Erian? He’s a multimillionaire. Until May 2013, he was chief executive of the PIMCO investment fund, one of the largest in the world. His annual earnings were estimated to be more than $100 million. Why did Mr. El-Erian step down from such...
Job / Life Satisfaction – Cinderella Man
Our role as providers for our families weighs heavily on us at times—especially when work is scarce.
Are you doing your ‘fair share’ at home?
1,200 married moms were polled about their parenting habits, focusing on how they share responsibilities with their spouses. The headline was an attention-grabber: “Working and Stay-at-Home Mothers Feel Like ‘Married Single Moms.'”
“Dear Daddy” Video: A Priority Wake-Up Call
Imagine that today you're reading a letter from your child, only it's ten or fifteen years in the future and your child is a young adult. What would he or she write to you? If you had the benefit of those insights about your relationship, would it change anything you do as a father today?
5 Daily Steps to Balance Work and Family
In today's world, one of the most common and urgent needs among fathers is tips for managing their time. The ability to do this is a key to success at work and with your family, and the beginning of a new year might be a great time to start some new habits in this area.
“Fatherhood Comes First” says Super Bowl Coach
Super Bowl XLIII-winning head coach Mike Tomlin wrote a commentary called "Fatherhood Comes First, Then the Game" in USA Today for the Friday before the big game.
Categories
Welcome to the fathers.com fathering library.
Daughters and Sports
Here’s something that some dads rarely consider. Daughters can be athletes, too! As a matter of fact, girls need to learn about teamwork, good sportsmanship and the thrill of victory just as much as boys. According to a recent article in the Kansas City Star, high...
A Father’s Heart for Daughters
There are a lot of reasons for you to be a loving father to your daughter. She’ll have a more positive view of men in general. More self-esteem as a woman. She’s more likely to stay sexually pure until marriage and have a healthier view of sexuality. But, today, I’d...
A (Re)Vision for Fathers & Society
by Dr. Ken Canfield I believe it’s good to plan for the future as fathers so we’re better prepared for the changes and challenges that our kids will bring our way. It’s also good to have dreams and aspirations for what we want to be, like setting high goals that...
Dad: Harness the Power of Sibling Competition
by Jay Payleitner Competition between siblings (or cousins) is a great tool for dads. While you can still outsmart them, there are all kinds of ways you can shape and motivate your kids and they won’t even know it. Got a pile of bricks that need to be moved from here...
Fathering Is Worth Doing Badly
Here at fathers.com, we want all dads to do their best. Be devoted to your children. Make them a top priority. Commit yourself to being there for them through all the ups and downs of life. Give them lots of encouragement and affirmation. Teach them skills and...
Questions to Help Dads Connect Heritage & Legacy
by Ken Canfield, Ph.D. Becoming a father is life-changing in many ways, as all dads know. At some point, often during the first few weeks or years of fatherhood, there is a kind of nexus between the past and the future in each man’s journey. Regarding the past,...
Tension with Our Kids’ Mom Deeply Affects Our Fathering
When there’s tension with your child’s mother, it impacts everyone. That might be an odd message to convey so soon after Valentine’s Day, but we all know what real life is like all the other days of the year that aren’t our anniversary or a special date night. And for...
A Dozen Activities to Help You Win Your Daughter’s Heart
by Michelle Watson Canfield, PhD, LPC With Valentine’s Day less than a week away, here’s a reminder that the holiday isn’t reserved only for romance between sweethearts. It’s also an opportunity for a girl to be treated in an extra special way by her dad, thus...
Winning and Losing in Father-Child Contests
by Ken Canfield, Ph.D. Bob’s two teenage sons were challenging him in many ways physically—arm twisting and wrestling and so on—and they talked about racing him to see if they were faster. It leads to a common question for dads: What’s the impact of winning or losing...
One Way to Restore Hope to Your Fathering
by Ken Canfield, Ph.D. What keeps a dad motivated and hopeful? That’s a key question that I’ve been pondering and researching for some time, and I’ll have more on this in the coming weeks and months. I’m more and more convinced of this: Hope is a powerful force and...
Birthday Reflections: A Father’s Legacy
by Ken Canfield, Ph.D. I recently gathered with many of my children and grandchildren to celebrate a birthday: my 70th. It was a wonderful and sometimes wild time together. During the days before that celebration, I came up with a sheet of reflections that I handed...
Game Time! Have a FUN Family Christmas
Are there gamers in your family? Actually this isn’t the kind of gaming you’re probably thinking of. And it has very little (if anything) to do with phones, computers or keyboards (unless you come up with one that involves a piano). This is about playing games with...