Parenting is something that no one can properly prepare for. No matter how many classes people attend or what tips their friends and family try to give them it’s never perfect. Each case is different and every situation that comes up while raising kids is unique to itself. However, president of the dad club of London, Sav Neth has some advice for parents who might not really know what they’re doing.
Neth is also a dad of two young boys, Jordan and Logan who are ten and eight respectively. Him and his wife who is a nurse, both take care of their kids and find the right balance to spend time with their kids.
“Every kid’s unique and kind of, you know, we always talk about 50-50, but 50-50 can be not just, you know. It can be 80-20. Every kid needs things differently, some kids excel in school, some excel in sports, some excel in community, and some excel in personal, and so you kind of find that balance,” says Neth.
It looks like the key to be a good parent is all about finding that balance. Too much of anything can be a problem. Neth adds that it’s all about effort. Showing up for your kids is huge to them because for the parent it might not seem as significant, but for the child it could mean the world to them. However, there is one more secret ingredient to being a good parent.
“So, the world’s a little different. We got to treat people differently. We got to respect people. Just show that love,” says Neth.
Love is the missing piece and could arguably be the most important one. Many parents believe that the love from a parent to their kid is unlike any other. It has even been described as unconditional.
As Neth mentioned though “the world’s a little different…” which mean parenting must evolve with the times. Like the main obstacle Neth says parents face nowadays is technology.
“I think of the social media age. I think there’s that gap like for me I’m you know I’m 40; the technology is great. I think like anything in the world. anything we can use in the world, it’s great. But if you use it wrongly, anything can be used wrong. Food, Whatever, but the world we live in, you got to know and understand technology,” says Neth.
Neth believes that everyone’s parenting techniques are different, but at the end of the day all that matters is the effort that’s put it. Neth explains that some parents might not discipline their kids properly out of the fear that they think their kids will hate them.
“Making kids realize, you know, respect everybody and like No matter where I go in life, who I talk to. You know I respect everybody equally and I treat everybody equally. You know, teach my kids that like no matter who that person is, what their job is, what their relationship is, you respect, please and thank you, open doors, you know, you listen,” says Neth.
At the end of the day however there’s one main thing Neth keeps in mind that reminds him how to be the dad he can be.
“I always tell a lot of my friends, the great gift in life is not a present, but being present, whatever you do, show effort. In temporary relationships and in friendships and your friends or your family are doing something, just show up. If it’s only five minutes, you know, just hey, that five minutes can be the world to them.” concluded Neth.
