Every parent wants to be respected. They want to be listened to. They want their advice to be taken seriously. They want to be looked up to. 

And how do far too many of us try to get these things from our kids? By endless words. By force. By fear. By simply assuming it’s ours by right. 

“You will earn the respect of all men if you begin by earning the respect of yourself,” Musonius Rufus reminds us. If you want your kids to respect you, respect yourself. Be worthy of respect.

Just think about it for a second: Why would they respect advice that you don’t live by? Why would they admire you when you’re not living up to your own potential? Why would they look up to you when you yourself are dealing with self-esteem issues, when you struggle with imposter syndrome? 

Get your stuff straight. Be the parent you know you can be—be the person you know you can be. The rest will follow. And if it doesn’t? Then at least you’ll be strong enough to deal with it.

P.S. This was originally sent on April 6, 2021. Sign up today for the Daily Dad’s email and get our popular 11 page eBook, “20 Things Great Dads Do Everyday.”