7 Things A Daughter Needs From Her Father
Image: Shutterstock
The truth is, there are many times in her life that a daughter needs her father. Growing up and as an adult, her father is the best friend a woman can have in her life. If you think there is room for improvement in your life as a father, don’t worry, it is a journey. Given below are some of the ways you can show up for your daughter and start being a better father.
1. She Needs You To Be A Friend
She needs you to listen. Unless she grows up with a father who respects her enough to listen to her, she will always struggle with speaking up and being heard. No matter how busy you are, show up for her, and spend some time beside her. Listen to her stories and engage with her developing opinions and theories about life, like a friend. It will not only make her entitled to having an opinion but also leave you feeling proud and smiling.
2. She Needs You To Teach Her To Dream
When the world puts restrictions on her dreams, be the father who frees her wings and not the one to ties them. Encouraging her to be her best self at all times is the right kind of support a father can give his daughter or son. Be the father who helps her to make her dreams come true. Do not let society and traditions be your favorite excuses for standing in her way.
3. She Needs You To Be An Example
A child’s first role model is always one of her parents. You may or may not deserve that title, but you can keep working towards earning it. As a dad, how you treat the people around you, especially her mother, will leave impressions on her mind about what she can expect from life going forward. Demonstrate a good marriage, show her that life is about companionship and trust, and hope. If your daughter has a good example to fall back on, she will never stray into troubled waters.
4. She Needs You To Be A Feminist
There are a lot of misconceptions against the word and the concept of feminism. Not many men would want to be associated with that label; even some women don’t. But as a father, you have an additional responsibility to make this world safer and more welcoming for your daughter or daughters. One of the ways you can do it is to fight alongside the women in your life when they demand fairness and justice from the society. As Barack Obama, the former US president, put it, your daughter needs to know that you are a feminist. Prove that to her by treating the women in your life with respect and kindness. Do not fall prey to toxic masculinity.
5. She Needs You To See You Being Vulnerable
Accept the good and the bad in her, and teach her to do the same. The only way you can do that is to do the same for yourself. Being vulnerable to your family will not make you weak. It will only strengthen your bonds. You being open and frank about the rejections you have faced and the failures you have had will make it easier for them to open up about their struggles too. If your child grows up bottling up their emotions, they can never be happy in their lives.
6. She Needs You To Be Trustworthy
In the times when it is becoming more and more difficult to trust people, having a parent whom one can trust is precious. Trust is an instinct that any child will naturally have towards their parent. As a father, be worthy of it. Children are also delicate and vulnerable. Be careful not to tread on their innocence and vulnerability. Guard her dreams, and instill faith in her. Be there for her when she has bad days, as a child or as an adult.
7. She Needs You To Show Her How To Live One’s Best Life
The key to raising a successful daughter is to give them a childhood based on values. Courage to pursue what matters to them comes from having people to support you. If your daughter grew up seeing you living your best life, happy and inspired, she would want the same for herself. Every day, choose to be the person that she would be proud to call her dad. Chase after your dreams so that one day in the future, your daughter can draw inspiration from you and do the same.
Father has a special place in a child’s life. Though we often think of the mother as the nurturer, the care and nurture that a daughter deserves from her father are irreplaceable. Do you have anything to add to this list? Leave it in the comments section below.
