My Best Decision as a Father

Virtually all children have confidence oozing out their pores.

They’re too young to know they can’t do something.

This is perfect because almost everything you try to do in life requires confidence. Unfortunately, by the time they’re teenagers, they lose that confidence.

What the hell happens?

I wondered what I could do to ensure my daughters have confidence embedded into their source code.

When the girls were 9 and 7, I enrolled them in spoken-word poetry workshops for teenagers.

They were too young to compete or be on the team.

But the teacher allowed them to participate. He even gave them a short private session.

This became one of the best parenting decisions I would ever make.

Spoken word poetry taught them to write well and express their thoughts and emotions. This is something we all need.

They learned to listen, be empathetic, and support emphatically. The girls loved their team, and the team loved them.

Then they had to perform their own pieces. It was effortless to do this in a room full of people that want you to succeed and do well.

The power of positive peer pressure was evident. When writers and poets surround you, you will write, speak, and perform with ease.

My girls are now 19 and 17.

They got the reps they needed to grow their confidence in all those workshops and open mics. They’ve performed in rooms with hundreds of people.

Hearing them speak on life’s stage with a sense of power and conviction is mesmerizing.

As fathers and parents, it’s our responsibility to ensure that our children maintain that confidence.

Spoken word may not be for everyone. However, we can find some other activity that helps embed confidence in their source code.

It will benefit them for the rest of their lives.