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.

Make them feel like they're enough.

Obviously, you want them to be successful. You want them to be

excellent at whatever they do in this life. But it is essential as you try to motivate and encourage

and inspire them that you are clear. All of this is extra. You have loved them from the moment

they were born. You were proud of them already. There's nothing they

have to do to earn this. Nothing they must accomplish to measure up in your eyes. They need to know

that they are enough. That's what Mr. Rogers was trying to get kids to understand when they watched

his show, that they made the world special just by being in it. This wasn't some

meaningless platitude. He had been a sickly small boy. He had a successful father. He didn't

quite fit in. It had been his grandfather who had told him that he was enough, that he was special,

that he was worth something. There are better forms of motivation out there, as we've discussed,

than deprivation. Withholding is a cruel carrot to wield. It doesn't matter if it worked on you.

It doesn't matter if it worked on Michael Jordan. You have to give what you didn't get. You have

to let them know. They are enough enough and they always, always have been.

Thanks for listening to The Daily Dad podcast. Please leave us a review. It helps. Tell your friends,

share this with other dads. And of course, you can sign up for an email version of this podcast

at DailyDad.com.