Improving Yourself Makes You a Better Father
Improving your fathering is fine, but it doesn’t always make you a better father. It is far better if you improve yourself so that you become a father with a bit more depth and dimension. Improving yourself as a package is a good idea on its own, but let’s examine dating as an example. Many people, especially men, go looking for dating tips, help and advice, all while neglecting the real issue at hand. If they improved themselves and worked on themselves, they would have far more success at dating than if they simply learned a few chat-up lines.
Get More Sleep
This sounds like a cop-out answer or something you would read in a hack’s motivational book, but tired people are not good parents. All of which is ironic considering that most parents are tired all the time, especially when their kids are young. Is there anything you can do to make your sleep more restful? Perhaps working out a little each day so that you sleep better, or cutting caffeine out of your diet? Consider fixing any night problems you have when you sleep, such as if you keep waking up at night. Getting better sleep will improve you as a person in both the short and long term. Do not believe the silly stories about famous productive people who only sleep four hours per day because it just isn’t true unless they are frequently taking pharmaceuticals.
Improve Your Appearance
Can ugly fellas be great fathers? Sure they can, but nobody is as ugly as they think. People are more welcoming to good-looking people who take care of themselves, and that is the sort of experience you want your child to have. You do not want people giving you funny looks when you take your kids out, nor do you want off-hand treatment by people at theme parks, or even in a social occasion. Take better care of yourself both for yourself and for your children. If you are not being the best person you can be, then you are short-changing yourself and your child.
Become a More Grateful Person
The worst people in this world are those who do not have gratitude. Be grateful that you even get to see your kids at all. Be grateful for your health, and for the fact you have a tomorrow on the calendar. More importantly, let your kids see that you are grateful for what you have earned and for what life has given you, and they will grow up to be better people. Horrible kids grow up to be horrible adults when they think they are entitled to things. Why be grateful if you are entitled to something. Kids learn from your actions, so be grateful for everything life offers, even the tricky parts, and your kids will become better people as a result.
Cheat Your Way into Five Fruit and Veg
In truth, you are supposed to have ten fruit and veg per day. Seems impossible, but you can cheat your way a little. For example, buy a few cheap tubs of Greek yogurt, pour it into a mixing bowl, and add in some lemon juice, frozen strawberries, tinned pineapple, frozen blueberries, some cinnamon spice, some nutmeg, and a few other fruits too (nothing too soft). Mix it up, separate it into plastic tubs of reasonable portions, and freeze the tubs. Every few days, eat one of the yogurts and you have many of your five-a-day fruits right there.
A similar thing can be done with soups and stews. You simply make a batch and load it with all the vegetables you are supposed to eat. Portion it out into tubs, freeze it, and then pull it out whenever you fancy having your five veg per day. It is not gourmet cooking, but it gets the required food into your body without too much fuss or cooking.
Add to Your Qualifications and Experience
Nobody says you have to change your career in order to be a better father, but you could certainly work on your career. Add something to it like a new qualification. Try learning something new like occupational therapy which can give you a new career or try getting more experience that will help you with your current career down the line. What you learn doesn’t even need to be directly related to your job, just so long as it adds something to your CV.
Teach Your Kids Something
They say that the best way to learn is to teach, and that can be true. Did you struggle with long division in school, then learn it for yourself and teach it to your kids? Have you always wanted to learn sign language or Chinese? Learn it yourself, and as you learn it, you should teach it to your kids. They won’t mind getting more quality time with dad, and you all get to learn something new and useful.
Improving yourself makes you a better person and that should follow through into successful fatherhood. It will also make it easier to stand up as a role model for your children.