Do you want to know how to be a better dad?
Most of us probably do, but the answer isn’t always simple or easy to carry out. But here at fathers.com we want to give you all the insights and helps we can, so we are giving you numerous answers to that question, from a dozen or more perspectives.
Blogs in the How to Be a Better Dad series:
Be Joyfully, Expectantly Inconvenienced by Peter Lewis
Kids Say THIS Is the Best Way to Be a Better Dad
Recognize the Importance of Being Present by David Hirsch
View Each Day as an Opportunity by Matt Haviland
Depend on Other Fathers by Randell Turner, Ph.D.
A Father’s Legacy is the Sum of His Choices by Rick Wertz
Overcome Your Father’s Shortcomings by Sam Jones
See the Glory by Jay Payleitner
Our Children Need Tender-Hearted Dads by Dave Clark
Dad: Your Most Effective Tool Is Showing Up by Dr. Michelle Watson Canfield
Leverage Life Moments for Your Kids’ Future by Brian Phipps
Become a Better Dad – One Step at a Time
What’s the most crucial aspect of being a dad from your perspective?
There are hundreds of books and research studies seeking to answer that question, but we’re asking dads and writers we know to boil it down to their essential insights in a short guest blog. We’ll feature those here at fathers.com, and adding them to the list here. (See below.)
At NCF, our essentials come from research by Dr. Ken Canfield and others, who studied the habits of thousands of dads and summed up strong fathering in a simple 4-part acrostic: I-CAN. It stands for:
Involvement – being present and actively engaged in your kids’ lives.
Consistency – being predictable and dependable for your children.
Awareness – knowing your kids and what they need from you to thrive.
And Nurturance – showing your kids how much they mean to you through words and actions.
Here’s more about the I-CANs, with articles about each one.
That’s a brief outline of our perspective on how to be a better dad, although even that isn’t quite as pared down to the essentials as the upcoming blogs will be.
So please keep tuning in. Subscribe to our free weekly email if you haven’t already. And most of all, take the advice of the writers you’ll read in this series. Try them and see what works for you and your kids as you seek to be a better dad.
What do you think? What’s YOUR #1 tip for being a better dad? Leave a comment on our Facebook page.
Action Points & Discussion/Reflection Questions:
- Where do your ideas about good fathering come from? Was there a man during your childhood who demonstrated those qualities?
- Approach an older dad and ask, “What’s your best tip for being a good dad?”
- What is the best tip you have for being a good dad? Share it with another dad this week.
- Looking over the four I-CANs above, which do you feel are your stronger and weaker areas? Click on the one that’s likely your weakest to get some insights and encouragement in that area.
