People Share The Best Lessons A Father Could Pass On To His Son

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Taking responsibility for your actions. It is unbelievable how bad people blame others for their problems and do not look themselves in the mirror to see what they could do better.

neildmaster

Letters from Jail....

My biological dad left me when I was born. He was a felon on the run. One thing he said to me in a letter from jail was. "I was a coward and didn't want to own up to my responsibilities. Look at where I am at now, I will never meet my son again. Don't take advantage of anyone that loves you and wants the best for you, in the end always learn to love one another, take responsibility for your actions, and never abounded your family."

Update : I want to thank everyone for the great comments and awards. I am 24 years old (male). I've accomplished great things and will always thank my dad for given me that drive... I love my step-dad now and he also is an amazing role model. When I have children, I will be the best dad ever. Again thank you for the nice comments, I rarely ever talk about this.

dawnshlitz

Prepare....

My dad has taught me a few. The two that first come to mind are:

Prepare for the worst but hope for the best

And....

The lessons best learned are the ones that hurt the most.

two-inner-wolves

kindness....

The best lesson for me is compassion. My dad would pull over to push broken down cars out of the road.

He would take the homeless guy by the White Castle sliders. He would shovel our neighbors sidewalk. I could go on. He taught me that the burden is lighter if we carry it together.

D1v3D1v3

get a pen

The TWO things that I think are core to teach your kids are empathy and personal responsibility.

This can be reflected in a variety of ways

• it's only a game if both people want to play
• big people watch out for little people
• treat other people the way you would like to be treated
• work before play cromulent_weasel 

the basics...

Know how to cook and clean.

Being a useless bachelor is less charming than you think. After you've found someone, it's the easiest tool you can use to impress them.

Having dinner ready for your partner in a clean kitchen after they've had a long day goes a lonnnng way, and it's really not that much effort.

My dad told me this before I left for college (with a few more sexist points I've omitted) but the message was the same. Don't be a slob, and know how to make a few killer meals.

Corporate-Asset-6375

Daughters....

Treat women like people, not commodities (Cannot believe this wasn't already posted).

M0rqu1ng4

As the father of two daughters and a son, this can't be stressed enough. This machismo "don't mess with my daughter" thing? Yes, tone it down a little and teach your daughters about consent and bodily autonomy, but so many dads like this fail to teach this same lesson to their sons.

Teach your sons to treat women how you'd want other people's sons to treat your daughters.

Honestly, take gender out of it and just teach it as a general rule - a rule made out of gold, like some sort of... golden... rule.

AdjNounNumbers

Once

Failing is fine so long as you learn from it and try not to repeat it.

I_am_a_Wookie_AMA

From the Web

I see a lot of answers posted here, most of them copied from some "father advice" website. Here's what I am tryin' to teach my kids:

1. Respect people and try to understand that sometimes bad people are bad because they had less luck in life.
2. Have enough confidence to try and succeeded doing things by yourself.
3. Even if you do things by yourself, your family and your friends WILL help you. and69

Feelings....

It's ok to show affection, and say "I love you." Greatest gift my father ever gave me.

Fonz136