Dads, please let me encourage you to change some things in your life. A recent University study found that the average father in America spends less than sixty seconds per day in conversations with his children!
The actual number was 47 seconds per day.
How in the world does that happen? Certainly we fathers love our children and want the best for them. So what does this study tell us about the focus of our investment in the lives of our children? Are we too focused on our work? Are we too focused on our paychecks?
What's with us men? Have we as fathers come to think that our kids really just need our money? I sure hope not.
Our children need us to look them in the eyes and talk with them. We need to actually be involved in the lives of our children and teens. We need to actively raise them, teach them, and shape their character and morals and values. We need to do these things on purpose, with a plan, with a focus. Parenting is a "hands on" activity.
So, spend time with your kids. Be available for your kids. Make your kids a major priority in your life. Protect your family. Be involved in your family.
Look at your personal definition of "success." My definition has become, "The progressive realization of moral, virtuous, or Godly goals."
Obviously this definition has little to do with how much money I earn, or how much status I attain in my profession. It has little to do with my children becoming sports stars or validictorians (although they are both). Success has to do with character, relationships, and spiritual growth.
So fathers, please take the time to teach your children. Be role models for your teens. And spend more than 47 seconds each day in conversation with your children.
Douglas Cowan, Psy.D., is a family therapist who has been working with ADHD children and their families since 1986. He is the clinical director of the ADHD Information Library's family of seven web sites, including http://www.newideas.net, helping over 350,000 parents and teachers learn more about ADHD each year. Dr. Cowan also serves on the Medical Advisory Board of VAXA International of Tampa, FL., is President of the Board of Directors for KAXL 88.3 FM in central California, and is President of NewIdeas.net Incorporated.
detailed home cleaning Park Ridge ..Children are notoriously bad at drinking enough liquids. They are... Read More
If your child or teen has been diagnosed with Attention... Read More
Dads, please let me encourage you to change some things... Read More
It used to strike me as odd - but really,... Read More
It is hard to believe that summer is coming to... Read More
Many families do not want to believe their child is... Read More
'How can I start getting my children to help out... Read More
John Bishop's Goal Setting for Students.comParents ? Minimize Homework Hassles?It's... Read More
So you're going to become a father. Now is not... Read More
If your parenting methods include abuse of any kind; physical,... Read More
When parents help their children learn to read, they help... Read More
Q. I don't like my children spending so much time... Read More
Spare the rod, spoil the child!This philosophy's been around a... Read More
Do you have a young child whose weight or eating... Read More
When a couple steps forth with a baby in tow... Read More
Successful parents have learned to be both firm and kind... Read More
Everyone needs friends, and, as parents, you and I both... Read More
Join a growing number of parents and teachers!Fact: Last year,... Read More
Some years ago when touring the Scottish Highlands, a man... Read More
There are moments in a parent's or grandparent's life, when... Read More
Despite the potentially dangerous side-effects of Ritalin, public school authorities... Read More
Information is gold when you are adopted. Every tiny piece... Read More
We are all familiar with the stories that most students... Read More
An apology is a sign of strength, not weakness. Sometimes... Read More
There are many reasons for treating your twins as individuals... Read More
express cleaning service Des Plaines ..What is hard for parentsLetting them learn from their mistakes.Trying... Read More
At age seven months in the womb, humans begin language... Read More
"I took care of Callie," my three-year-old announced.Callie had been... Read More
It's a familiar scene: Kids screaming at each other, complaining... Read More
What is Happening in the brain of children, teens, and... Read More
Not Letting Them Think.We all implicitly know that anything questioning... Read More
One of the challenges for parents with a gifted child... Read More
IntroductionChildren are the gifts of God to parents. That young... Read More
One of the most prevalent myths of our modern culture... Read More
When David was nine and Laura was twelve, the battles... Read More
Sometimes dreams really can come true! May 8th - 11th,... Read More
Do you remember how you first learned the alphabet? I... Read More
Parents are always looking for ways to open up the... Read More
Research published by University of Rochester neuroscientists C. Shawn Green... Read More
If you are like most people today, you do not... Read More
Love, love, love. It makes the world go round. It... Read More
For many years underparenting was perhaps the biggest problem facing... Read More
Our back-to-school buying habits do not help kids succeed in... Read More
There is nothing pleasant about failure, at least not at... Read More
Most of us recognize the continuing escalation of violence around... Read More
Most of us when asked what we want our children... Read More
"All that I am or ever hope to be, I... Read More
Our children are growing up bilingual in the French part... Read More
Here is a top secret to make your child genius... Read More
One of my first memories of childhood is that of... Read More
Parenting |