I have played on three different teams over my 11-year NFL career: the Patriots, Browns and currently the Saints. There are always guys in the locker room who are fine just being in the NFL. There is no ambition for more.
When I played for the Patriots in 2007, we were undefeated. After every win Coach Bill Belichick would give us a stern warning, “Don’t let success make you complacent. We haven’t arrived.” He wanted us to know that there was always room for improvement. It was a great reminder on the need to give the best effort week in and week out.
Complacency has a way of working its way into our lives like a disease keeping us from reaching our true potential. It causes us to lose focus and fail. The same is true of fatherhood. Are you complacent just being a dad or do you want to be the best dad for your kids? It takes focus and maximum effort every day.
Here are 4 tips on how to stay focused in fatherhood:
Set Goals
Without goals, we are prone to wander aimlessly and arrive nowhere. Setting goals gets us to plan a course and picture where we want to be. If you want focus, you need something to focus toward. Make sure the goal is achievable and measurable. In fatherhood, it could be always putting your phone away when you come home so you can spend time with your kids without distractions. You may set a goal of reading to your kids a certain number of times a week or making a list of things to do together each month. Whatever you want to be, set goals to get there and follow through on them. Tell them to your kids. They are great at holding us accountable.
Track and Budget Your Time
Financial budgets are made to eliminate wasteful spending. We tend to waste a lot of time, particularly with the technology boom. If you have goals as a dad, you need to maximize your time to accomplish them. Schedule time to be with your kids. Every minute that passes doing something trivial is lost opportunity to mold and shape our kids. Protect that time. Make the most of it.
Be Consistent in Your Activity
Follow through on your goals by outlining the activities that will get you there. There are days when we feel tired, frustrated and discouraged. Don’t let those days take you out of the game. Practice the daily activities that will achieve your vision as a dad. Pray, play and talk with your kids every day if you can. The people who are consistently active are the ones who realize goals.
You Haven’t Arrived
Don’t just be happy to be a dad, simply complacent to hold the title. Attack each day with purpose. Bring your “A” game. Every day, try to learn something new that will make you a better dad. Study other dads you admire and work on those qualities. There is always room for improvement. We will never reach perfection, but we can work towards it.
How do you stay focused as a dad?
Benjamin Watson is a tight end for the New Orleans Saints in the National Football League.
For the original article, visit allprodad.com.
