Welcome to the Daily Dad podcast where we provide one lesson every day to help you with your most important job being a dad.

These are lessons inspired by ancient philosophy, by practical wisdom, and insights from dads all over the world.

Thank you for listening, and we hope this helps.

And what did you do?

Long before he was a poet, before he was a conscientious objector, William Stafford was just a kid.

He was a kid in the 1920s when bullying and racism and all sorts of cruelty were out in the open.

One day, young William came home and reported to his parents that two young black kids

were being taunted at school. His parents had one question for him,

and what did you do, Billy? This is a wonderful question. Notice that the parents did not rush to the

phone to call his teachers. They did not yell. They did not fret or worry, nor did they

criticize him or assume anything. They used it as an opportunity to ask, and what did you do about it?

And his answer was a good one. He said, I went and stood by them. One can only imagine how

pleasantly surprised they were to find that their son had absorbed the lessons they'd tried to

teach him at home, that he understood values and duty and kindness

and human decency. And that's why we must apply this in our own homes, because we want to

raise kids who don't just come to us with problems or complaints or fears, but empowered

kids who not only know the right thing, but have absorbed the most important thing, actually doing it.

My newest book, Courage is Calling, Fortune Favors the Brave, is now available for pre-order.

We've got a bunch of amazing bonuses. You can get signed copies, of course. I'm so proud of this

book. General Jim Mattis is called it a superb handbook

for crafting a purposeful life. Matthew McConaughey, also a father, called it an urgent call

to arms to each and all of us. I do hope you check it out. It's my first in the Four Virtue series,

...