If you know country music, you know Midland. The retro-leaning, tequila-toting, Grammy-nominated trio built their whole brand on style, swagger, and storytelling. And behind the bass, and behind the camera for many of their videos, is today’s RAD Dad: Cam Duddy.

Cam lives in that rare overlap where creative careers, family life, and school schedules all collide. One minute he’s on stage or directing a shoot. The next he’s at the bus stop. It’s a very specific kind of juggling act, and he makes it work without pretending it’s glamorous.

Parenting’s Hardest Part

Staying consistent with the school routine. This is the universal dad battle. The spelling lists, the reading logs, the forms that magically regenerate every week. Even rockstars have to track homework.

Parenting’s Best Part

Watching his kids become their own people. No crafting them into performers, no forcing the family business. Just observing two young humans figure out who they are.

What He Wishes He Knew Before Fatherhood

That it goes fast. The kind of fast where ages 5 and 9 arrive before you figured out where the toddler years went.

Dad Advice That Stuck

Try everything. Give kids as many experiences as possible. Not to manufacture prodigies, but to help them build range, confidence, and curiosity.

A Day in the Duddy Household

  • Wake up
  • Coffee
  • School drop-off
  • Work
  • Bus stop pickup
  • Dinner
  • Focus on the kids until they’re down for the night

This is the blueprint. Routine as an anchor, no matter how unpredictable the entertainment world gets.

How He Handles the Pile-Up

He schedules his days. Not in a productivity-guru way. More in a “this is how things don’t fall apart” way.

His Reset Button

Sauna time. Sweat, quiet, heat. A simple ritual for recalibrating when life gets loud.

His Non-Negotiable

Dinner is family time. Everyone present, even if dinner looks like a half-chopped rotisserie chicken and baby carrots.

When He Finally Gets Time Alone

He reads. And he does not want to be interrupted. Every dad deserves a sanctified hobby.

Where to Find Him

@cameronduddy

Dad Day Takeaway

Cam proves that being a great dad isn’t about slowing life down. It’s about keeping the parts that matter steady, even when the rest of your world is moving at tour speed. Family time, real presence, shared meals, repeat. That is the craft.

Meet Zack Telander — Austin-based musician, new dad, and the kind of guy who’ll rip a guitar solo at night and crush a diaper change at sunrise. You can find him on Instagram (@zack_telander) and hear his music on Spotify (search “Telander” and turn it up).

His take on fatherhood is honest, grounded, and absolutely on-brand for the Rad Dad universe.

The Dad Who Had to Slow Down to Keep Up

Zack has lived most of his adult life in go-mode. Music careers don’t care about “balance.” They’re fast, unpredictable, and built on momentum.

Then Charlie arrived.

The hardest part for him wasn’t the sleepless nights, although those are real. It was learning to slow down, to let the world shrink to the size of a baby’s hand gripping his finger.

Funny thing. The hardest part became the best part.

Every morning he goes on a walk with his wife, daughter, and their dog. No rushing. No forcing. Just a young family moving through the world together. He told us it’s the one thing he’d happily do forever.

That’s the type of dad moment you remember when you’re old.

Duty Over Balance

A lot of dads talk about “balance.” Zack laughs at that idea.

He told us, “I don’t. It’s my duty to be a good dad and husband first.” No life hacks. No elaborate systems. Just simple duty and excitement to show up for his family. And when things get overwhelming, he returns to the things that reset him: playing guitar, singing, and lifting. The essentials.

He also protects two non-negotiables:
• Alone time
• Real dates with your partner

Quick Hits From Zack

Hardest part of parenting:
Slowing down. And yes, the sleep.

Most rewarding part:
Those morning family walks.

Wish he knew earlier:
Kids bring emotional balance.

Best advice he’s gotten:
“Your kids are watching everything you do. So do right.”
(A perfect Dad Wisdom fit. )

Typical day:
Up around 6:30, diaper, bottle, walk, play, nap. Repeat until bedtime.

Reset button:
Guitar, singing, the gym.

Flying solo hobbies:
Guinness, wings, YouTube. A legendary trio.

Why This Q&A Stuck With Us

Zack is the blueprint for the modern dad. Creative but grounded. Driven but present. Intentional without being precious about it. He is not chasing balance. He is not chasing perfection (we’ve talked about that one. Progress beats perfect every time. ) He is chasing presence.

Dad Day Takeaway

Slow down. Walk with your people. Keep one ritual that reminds you who you are outside of diapers and bottles. Remember your kids are watching. Let them see a life that’s worth following.

Want more of Zack? Follow him on IG (@zack_telander) and stream his music on Spotify. Perfect soundtrack for that early morning stroller walk. 🎧👶🏼

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Becoming a dad for the first time feels a little like standing under a fire hose labeled “parenting advice.” Books. Blogs. Well-meaning relatives who suddenly become experts.

But if you ask real dads who are in the trenches—or just made it out—you get something far better than textbook theory: hard-won, lived-in wisdom.

Based on a candid Slack thread from a group of dads swapping advice with a dad-to-be, here’s the distilled, no-BS, modern playbook.

1. Your Life Is About to Shift—Beautifully

One dad summed it up with a simple philosophy:
You spend years building your life, and parenthood is the moment you start giving your life away—in the best possible way.

That doesn’t mean losing yourself. It means aiming your energy differently. Every effort to make the environment better for your partner and baby is time well spent.

Fatherhood: the sacrifice that somehow refills your tank.

2. Forget Perfect—Focus on Presence

Dads kept repeating this theme: you learn as you go. No matter how many books you read, every baby writes their own script.

Yes, prepare. But also accept that:

  • Plans break.

  • Routines fall apart.

  • Sleep is a myth (for a bit).

  • You will laugh at how chaotic it gets.

Your job isn’t to know everything. It’s to show up, watch closely, respond with love, and recalibrate tomorrow.

3. Keep It Stupid Simple: Feed, Change, Sleep

Multiple dads said they were drowning in info until someone told them the core mission:

  1. Keep the baby fed

  2. Change their diapers

  3. Figure out sleep (eventually)

Everything else is noise.

Parenting a newborn isn’t hard because of complexity—it’s hard because of the relentless simplicity. High-stakes boredom, as one dad put it.

4. Build a Routine You Can Fall Back On

Not a down-to-the-minute military schedule—just a rhythm.

Newborns are tiny chaos goblins, so routines get disrupted constantly. But having a baseline pattern gives you something to return to when your brain feels like pudding.

Pro tip from veteran dads:
Trade nights so at least one parent gets real sleep. It’s a game-changer.

5. Your Partner Needs You in a Whole New Way

A common refrain: the best thing you can do early on is support your partner like it’s your full-time job.

  • Change every diaper you reasonably can

  • Handle night feeds when possible

  • Advocate for her in the hospital

  • Encourage rest—and protect it

  • Shoulder the mental load where she can’t

This isn’t heroism. It’s partnership. And it pays emotional dividends for decades.

6. If You Can Afford Help, Take It

Several dads swore by hiring a night doula—even for a few nights a week.

Not everyone can swing it, but if you do have the resources, experienced hands in those first 4–8 weeks can reduce stress dramatically. They teach you the essentials and give you something priceless: sleep.

7. Ask for Help (Seriously. Ask.)

Friends and family want to help—but they don’t know how.

Be explicit:

  • “Can you come hold the baby while I nap?”

  • “Can you bring dinner?”

  • “Can you sit with the baby so I can shower?”

Small gestures feel huge in the newborn fog.

8. Capture Everything—It Goes Fast

New dads agreed:
Take pictures constantly.

One day you’re rocking a seven-pound burrito. The next, they’re walking. The next, they’re in kindergarten. It’s wild how quickly your tiny human becomes a full person.

Your camera roll becomes a time machine.

9. Listen to Your Instincts

Modern parenting throws a mountain of opinions at you.

But veteran dads were clear:

  • You’ll know your baby better than you think

  • You and your partner’s instincts matter

  • Doctors are helpful, but not omniscient

  • If something feels off, call—guilt-free

You’ll develop a gut for this stuff fast.

10. Don’t Miss the Magic

New dads kept returning to one emotional truth:

The newborn days are brutal…but also unbelievably beautiful.

Skin-to-skin time. The first sleepy smile. Their tiny hand wrapping your finger. Your partner seeing you as a dad for the first time.

More than one dad admitted tearing up just remembering it.

Final Takeaway for the First-Time Dad

Fatherhood doesn’t start the day the baby arrives. It starts the moment you decide to show up with intention. So prepare a little. Laugh a lot. Embrace the chaos. Support your partner. Capture the good moments. Forgive the tough ones.

And remember this:

You’re not becoming a different person.
You’re becoming a deeper version of yourself.

Welcome to the best adventure of your life.

Want real talk from real dads? Join our private Slack community at www.dadday.co/community and plug into the best dad group on the internet.

Growing up, my dad had a handful of sayings he’d repeat to us before school, parties, or big events. Whether it was “read the damn problem” before a test, “proper planning prevents poor performance” before a speech or game, or “the hurrier I go, the behinder I get” when we rushed through something and made it worse — they were endless.

And, in my adolescence, admittedly annoying. But one that’s always stuck with me is: “Remember who you are, and where you came from.” That one usually came out before dates, going to a “friend’s house” (aka party) in high school, or leaving for college.

It was my dad’s simple reminder that our actions reflected not just on us, but on our family — and that first impressions are what reputations are built on.

As I’ve gotten older, I’ve started to see that phrase differently. Whether it’s in a job search, finding a spouse, or becoming a dad, the best thing you can do is know who you are, be proud of that, and stick to your values. When something doesn’t sit right, have the courage to speak up — but also the humility to listen and respect a different perspective.

Now, as a new father, that saying hits even deeper. It makes me think about how I want my kids to remember me — how I make them feel. I want to be the kind of supportive dad mine was: someone they can come to with anything.

And while discipline has its place, love and understanding should always lead the way. For others, “remember who you are and where you came from” might mean something entirely different — maybe it’s a promise to never return to a painful place or mindset. And that’s just as meaningful.

In the end, that phrase can mean many things to many people — and that’s the beauty of it. But I do believe it’s one of the most important lessons we can pass down to the next generation.

I never set out to become an expert in health insurance. I just wanted to take care of my family and not feel like I was lighting money on fire every month. If you’re self-employed, you know the drill. Every year it’s the same dance: compare plans, fill out forms, get hit with a number that makes you say, “There’s no way that’s right.”

For years, I paid over a grand a month for coverage that somehow didn’t cover anything. I’d get bills that made no sense, sit on hold for hours, and still end up paying for stuff I thought was included.

It’s the one part of being a dad and a business owner that always made me feel helpless. No matter how hard I worked, this one system had me beat.

One afternoon, I was sitting at the kitchen table doing that dreaded math again. Premiums, deductibles, out-of-pocket limits, and whatever else they can think up to confuse you. I just thought, this is insane.

I’d rather take that money and buy peace of mind somewhere else.

That’s when I found CrowdHealth.

At first, I figured “community health” was just another gimmick. It sounded like one of those vague startup ideas that disappears in six months. But I started reading, watched a few interviews, talked to a couple of members, and it just made sense. It was simple, transparent, and cheaper.

So I joined.

Within a month, my costs dropped by about 40 percent. My family of four went from paying $1,000 to under $600. And if something major happens, my max out-of-pocket is $500.

That’s it. No fine print. No “actually, that’s not covered.”

I still remember talking to my wife after that first month and saying, “I think this might actually work.”

The biggest game changer has been the virtual care.

With two little kids, someone is always coughing, sneezing, or breaking out in a rash. Now, instead of packing everyone in the car for urgent care, I just open the app, hop on a call, and talk to a real doctor. Usually within minutes.

They take their time, ask real questions, and if we need a prescription, it’s handled right there. It’s easily the most dad-friendly system I’ve ever used.

(And just to be clear, if it’s an emergency, you go to the ER. No question. This just covers everything else that makes parenthood a constant game of “Is this serious or just Tuesday?”)

But what really sold me wasn’t the cost or convenience. It was the community.

A few months back, I got an email from CrowdHealth about a woman who lost her husband unexpectedly. Members could chip in to support her as she faced life grieving an unimaginable loss while taking care of two little boys. My wife and I sent a little bit through Venmo.

It wasn’t much, but it felt right.

When was the last time your insurance company asked you to help someone instead of sending you another bill? That moment made it feel less like a system and more like a circle. Real people helping each other out.

I don’t usually write stuff like this, but switching to CrowdHealth has been one of the best calls I’ve made. Not just for our budget, but for my sanity. It’s simple. It’s human. And it doesn’t make me feel like I’m getting hustled every month.

I used to think traditional insurance was the responsible thing to do. Now I think being responsible means finding something that actually works.

So yeah, I’m not going back.

“Peace of mind shouldn’t cost more than your mortgage.”

Being a dad means protecting your family. Sometimes that means finding a smarter way to do it, even if it means walking away from the system everyone else says you need.

Editor’s Note:
Yep, we use CrowdHealth ourselves here at Dad Day. It’s been a game-changer for our own families, which is why we’re comfortable sharing this story.

If you want to give it a try, you can use our code DADDAY for a 3 month discount on your membership.