Tag: teaching

Do you live by a code?

What is your default life code? If you could have a list to share with your children about how you want them to act, or how you should be acting for them to see, what would it be? Some of the things I want my kids to see from me are the following…

Always try your best, but have fun doing it.

Be respectful and kind.

Be humble in winning and in defeat. Act like you’ve been there before.

Hold yourself to high standards, but don’t judge others if they don’t do the same.

Hope for the best, but plan for the worst.

Be optimistic, but realistic.

Don’t worry, be happy. Life is good.

Setting an example

“Great dads know that they are setting the example for just about everything in their child’s life. How to handle adversity. How to be a friend. How to treat those less fortunate. How to succeed with humility. How to care for the people you love. How to be a good parent.” – From Daily Dad (the creators of The Daily Stoic)

Think about that everyday. How are you acting? Would you want your kids to see that and emulate you? Are you throwing an adult tantrum when things don’t go your way? Are you pouting? Are you mean?

Show your kids how to act and speak with dignity, how to apologize when they’re wrong, how to stand up for themselves, how to control their emotions. Be the best version of yourself for you, but also for them. Because you are teaching them how to respond in these situations, whether you think they’re looking or not…

Reading vs doing and the 10,000 hour rule

I love the idea of Malcolm Gladwell’s 10,000 hours. Basically, if you want to “master” anything, you have to put in the work and deliberately practice for roughly 10,000 hours.

One way to accelerate that timeline without experiencing all of the setbacks is by reading where others have tried and failed, what they learned, what their best practices are, things to keep in mind, etc. That’s why reading is so important. Even though it’s not the same as doing (and you typically don’t retain as much reading about something versus doing it), you can still add to your skill set by learning as much through books when you are unable to learn by doing.

Whenever you have the means to do something though (whether that is not having time, money, or energy constraints), then do it. Make a plan and intentionally follow through with that plan. There is no substitute for doing. You can have a good understanding of a subject by reading about it, but if you never do it (and preferably teach it too), then you will never truly master it.

On mentoring

You should always strive to have a mentor and be a mentor. Doing this will allow you to understand that a) you don’t know everything and b) you have a lot of knowledge to pass along to ease the path of someone else. Having a mentor should keep you humble, yet being a mentor can help to boost your confidence. It should put you in a mindset to learn and a mindset to teach. It should let you give in addition to receiving.

Patience with teaching

It takes strength to be gentle. Anyone can be rude, but it takes self-control, strength, and discipline to be patient and caring.

For example, do you get easily annoyed (and show it) when others aren’t understanding what you’re explaining? Be gentle with them. Try to explain it in another way. Whether that means using a different example (verbally) or using a different teaching method (they may learn better by reading or doing instead of listening), if you really want them to understand what you’re talking about, you need to adapt your teaching style to how they learn best. Regardless of whether your other methods work, at the very minimum you’ll become a better teacher by learning how to use different teaching methods.

Lastly, if you really want someone to learn something, you can be firm with them, but don’t be rude or make disparaging remarks. While that may motivate some people, it will make even more people “shut down.” Then, not only do you lose your chance at a teachable moment, but you also hurt their self-esteem and lose their respect (if only temporarily) in the process.