Raising kids while building something of your own is a constant balancing act. Charlie Lima knows that tension well.
Charlie lives in College Station, Texas, where he owns and operates a gym while raising four kids. Three boys, ages six, eight, and ten, and a thirteen-year-old daughter. Different stages. Different needs. All happening at once.
Holding the Line While Adapting
The hardest part of parenting, Charlie says, isn’t effort. It’s discernment.
He’s constantly navigating the space between how he was raised and how his kids need to be raised in a completely different time. The goal isn’t to copy and paste his childhood. It’s to carry forward the big themes and values, then shape them around the world his kids are growing up in.
That tension is ongoing. And intentional.
Why the Small Moments Matter
The most rewarding part of fatherhood for Charlie is the way his kids love. Purely. Loyally. Fully.
That loyalty makes even the smallest interactions meaningful. A hug. A quick conversation. A shared laugh. Those moments add up, even when the days feel long.
Becoming a dad also revealed something unexpected. How much patience parenting actually requires and how quickly kids expose perfectionism. With four kids, control disappears fast. Charlie admits he’s still working on both, but those lessons have made him a better father and a better person.
Showing Up for the Big Stuff
One piece of advice that stuck with Charlie came from a 2013 EntreLeadership Master Series. Dave Ramsey spoke on a panel with his daughter about work and family balance. When asked if her dad worked too much, she said yes, but added that he was always there for the big stuff.
That line stuck.
It stuck because Charlie’s own dad lived the same way. Self-employed. Building a business. Still coaching teams. Still showing up when it mattered. That example shaped how Charlie approaches fatherhood today.
You can’t be everywhere. But you can be present for what counts.
A Day in the Lima Household
Charlie’s days start early. His favorite part of the morning is when the kids wake up and find him at the table. Wrapped in blankets. Half asleep. Full hugs.
Before heading out, he kisses his daughter on the cheek while she’s still sleeping. Then the day begins.
If he’s home before dark, he’s in the front yard playing football with the boys. Evenings mean dinner together, baths, and bedtime. Charlie and his wife tuck the kids in together every night and pray with them before sleep.
It’s a rhythm. One built on consistency.
Navigating Busy Seasons
Owning a business pulls you in multiple directions, and Charlie doesn’t pretend otherwise. The biggest blessing, he says, is how he and his wife, Alicia, complement each other.
When the gym needs more from him, she carries more at home. When things are lighter, he steps back in. Communication is key, especially during heavier seasons when missing things at home hurts the most. They navigate it together.
Resetting and Staying Grounded
About a year and a half ago, Charlie found a reset that stuck. Sauna and cold plunge sessions at Sweatscape. It’s become a grounding ritual. Every time he leaves, he feels renewed.
Physically and mentally.
Non-Negotiables
Charlie’s non-negotiables are clear and deeply rooted. Hugs and kisses. Saying “I love you” often. Tucking the kids in every night. Praying together. Being present. Providing.
When he gets time alone, it usually involves movement. CrossFit. Running. Ironman training. Sauna and cold plunge.
Charlie’s story is a reminder that fatherhood isn’t about perfection or control. It’s about presence, patience, and showing up for the moments your kids will remember.
You can follow him at @trainwithcharlie.
Raising kids in a major city has a rhythm of its own. Faster pace. Tighter schedules. More noise. Billy Parks knows that rhythm well.
Billy lives in Los Angeles with his wife and their two boys, ages twelve and fourteen. By day, he works as an investment professional. By night and weekend, he’s deep in the work of raising teenage boys in a world that’s always online.
Parenting in the Age of Screens
Ask Billy what the hardest part of parenting is right now and he doesn’t hesitate. Technology.
Managing screens without turning into a full-blown psychopath is a daily challenge. There’s no clear roadmap, no perfect system, and definitely no magic hack.
Billy’s goal isn’t control for control’s sake. It’s raising kids who know how to engage with the world without being consumed by it.
He doesn’t want to raise screenagers. He wants to raise capable humans. Billy has written openly about navigating tech and teens, including a thoughtful piece on giving his son an iPhone (a loaded gun). You can read it here.
Watching Independence Take Shape
The most rewarding part of fatherhood, especially at this stage, is autonomy. Billy lights up when he talks about seeing his boys run their own program. Getting themselves where they need to be. Handling responsibilities without constant reminders.
Those moments signal something deeper. Trust. Confidence. Growth.
They’re proof that the slow, often invisible work of parenting is doing its job.
The Crew Matters
One thing Billy wishes he’d known sooner is how critical community is. Finding like-minded dads to walk the journey alongside you isn’t optional. It’s essential.
Advice is helpful. Books are useful. But nothing replaces a crew of parents in the same season, dealing with the same chaos, and finding ways to make it work together.
In Billy’s world, the village is real. And when things get hectic, the squad shows up.
via @billyfilm IG
A Typical Day, LA Style
A normal day looks like two working parents and two busy kids operating in urban sync. Mornings start with breakfast before the boys take the train to school. They’re even working toward a couple days a week where the kids fully own breakfast themselves.
Afternoons and evenings are filled with practices, games, and quick dinners. Sometimes that means cheap-and-cheerful neighborhood spots. Sometimes it’s eating at home. It’s nonstop movement. Pickups. Drop-offs. Hangs.
Weekends slow down in a different way. Less structure. More dirt. More outdoors.
Keeping Perspective When It Gets Messy
When work, life, and family all hit at once, Billy admits it doesn’t always run smoothly. Sometimes it clicks. Often it doesn’t.
The key is perspective. Progress over perfection. Keep moving forward, course-correct when needed, and don’t beat yourself up for missing a step.
When he needs to reset, Billy heads outside. Away from tech. Into the dirt. Whether it’s fishing, riding motorcycles, or just being in nature, the outdoors recalibrates everything.
Non-Negotiables and What Matters Most
Billy’s one hard line in dad life is simple. Don’t mess with mom. She’s the heart and soul of their home, and everything flows better when that’s respected.
When he gets time alone, he gravitates toward the same things he loves doing with his kids. Fly fishing. Sea fishing. Motorcycle rides. Movies. Dirt under his boots.
Billy’s story is a reminder that modern fatherhood doesn’t require perfection. It requires intention, community, and a willingness to keep learning as the kids grow.
You can follow him at @billyfilm.
Some businesses grow fast. Others grow deep.
Dave Allee started Almond Surfboards 17 years ago in his hometown of Costa Mesa, California. What began as a custom surfboard operation turned into a respected surf brand rooted in craftsmanship, patience, and doing things the right way. Nearly two decades later, Dave still runs the business, while also building a family-run bison jerky company on the side.
He’s also a dad of two, raising a six-year-old and a three-year-old between Costa Mesa, California and Coeur d’Alene, Idaho.
Photo:@scottsnyderphoto
Ambition vs. Presence
For Dave, the hardest part of parenting isn’t a lack of time. It’s managing attention.
As an entrepreneur, his ambitions run deep. As a dad, so does his desire to be present and intentional at home. Those two don’t always coexist peacefully.
His kids don’t love seeing a laptop open, and they’re quick to call it out. The solution is simple but not always easy. When it’s work time, Dave physically removes himself so that when he’s with the kids, he’s actually with them.
The tradeoff is worth it. He gets a lot of time with his family. Midweek pancakes are a thing. Breakfast matters.
The Power of Small Moments
The most rewarding part of fatherhood, Dave says, is all the little moments. The stuff you don’t plan for.
Letting the kids help with projects. Bringing them into the kitchen. Getting them outside and giving them a wide range of experiences to draw from later in life. While answering this very interview, Dave got pulled away to build Hot Wheels tracks with his three-year-old son. That’s kind of the point.
Becoming a dad also gave him a deeper understanding of love. He didn’t fully grasp how much his own parents loved him until he had kids of his own. Fatherhood became a constant reminder of grace, patience, and God’s love.
Lessons Learned Along the Way
Nothing, Dave says, can truly prepare you for becoming a dad. No book. No advice. No mental framework.
If he could change one thing, it wouldn’t be how he parents. It would be how he lived before kids. He opened a retail store at 22, which meant weekends were mostly spoken for throughout his adult life. He wishes he and his wife had traveled more early in their marriage. Not out of regret, but perspective.
The advice that stuck most came from John Eldredge: It’s the little things that build a beautiful life. Dave sees that play out daily.
A Day in the Allee Household
Dave’s days start early. His alarm goes off at 5:05 a.m., six days a week. He loves the quiet hours before the house wakes up. That’s when deep work happens. Or a workout. Or reading. Ideally all three.
That early start allows him to pause, make breakfast for his family, and then get back to work once the kids head to school. If he sleeps in, the whole day feels off. The balance comes from going to bed early. Around 9:30.
When work, life, and family collide, Dave tries to be fully where he is. One hundred percent at work when working. One hundred percent present when with the kids. The in-between, he says, is a dead zone and best avoided.
Staying Grounded
When things get busy, Dave resets through simple rhythms. Reading at night. Writing in the morning. Moving his body whenever possible.
His non-negotiable in dad life is breakfast. Burritos. Pancakes. Bacon. Anything goes, as long as he’s making it.
When he gets time alone, it looks like solo surf sessions, scouting for elk, whiskey neat, and old jazz. Quiet, focused, and intentional. Much like the way he’s built his businesses and his family.
You can follow Dave at @almondsurfboards and @rangerbison.
If you’ve ever tried to build a home gym, chances are Cooper Mitchell helped you do it, whether you realized it or not.
Coop is the founder of Garage Gym Reviews, one of the most trusted platforms in the fitness world for reviews, guides, and education around home gym equipment. What started as a niche interest grew into a massive resource for everyday lifters who want to train seriously without stepping foot in a commercial gym.
But behind the racks, barbells, and YouTube videos, Coop is also a dad of six.
Yes, six.
His kids range from eight years old to one-year-old twins, and life in the Mitchell household moves fast. When asked about the hardest part of parenting, Coop doesn’t sugarcoat it.
It’s navigating fatherhood alongside all the other responsibilities he has and still wants to keep having. Work matters. Health matters. Faith matters. But so does knowing when to put each in its proper place.
Building a Life Around Priorities
Coop’s days start early. Around 5 a.m., he’s up reading the Bible and praying before heading into his garage gym for a solid training session. From there, it’s coffee with the kids, work, homeschooling breaks, and afternoons filled with play, Legos, throwing balls, and being outside.
Evenings slow down intentionally. Dinner together. Sharing stories from the day. Family worship that includes reading scripture, catechism, singing hymns, and prayer. Then books, board games, and bedtime.
It’s structured, but not rigid. Purposeful, but lived-in.
When everything hits at once, Coop leans on a principle that guides his decisions. Knowing the difference between urgency and importance. Everything feels urgent, but only some things truly matter. His goal is to give his best energy to what’s important, even when the urgent is loud.
The Weight of Time
Before becoming a dad, Coop suspected time moved quickly. Fatherhood confirmed it. The days are long, but the years are short. That awareness shapes how he and his wife process life together. At the end of long days, they sit in bed and trade stories about the kids. Moments they don’t want to forget. A way of slowing time down by remembering it.
The advice that stuck with him most is one he thinks about often. Be the person you want your children to grow into. Not just someone who teaches values, but someone who lives them.
Staying Grounded
When life gets heavy, Coop resets through prayer, time in God’s Word, and lifting heavy. His non-negotiable for dad life is surprisingly simple. Smile. Exude joy. Be the blessing man.
And when he gets time alone, he keeps it classic. Fine cigars and good books.
Coop’s story is a reminder that strength isn’t just built under a barbell. It’s built in routines, priorities, and showing up consistently for the people who matter most.
You can follow Cooper at @homegymcoop, and find Garage Gym Reviews on YouTube.
There’s a certain honesty you only get from musicians who’ve lived a few lives. Tony Kamel fits squarely in that camp.
Tony writes and performs songs for a living. Some people even listen. He’s toured, recorded, chased the dream, and done the unglamorous work that keeps the lights on. Now, he’s also a dad navigating a very different kind of stage.
Tony lives in the Austin, Texas area with his wife and their four-year-old daughter. Their second child is arriving this February. When asked what the hardest part of parenting has been, he doesn’t romanticize it.
Everything is hard. Once you accept that hard is the baseline, it oddly gets easier. That mindset shift matters, especially in the early years. Sleep deprivation, he admits, is a real personality test.
Finding Meaning in the Small Stuff
For Tony, the most rewarding part of fatherhood isn’t the big milestones. It’s the small moments that show up quietly and disappear just as fast.
Right now, he’s his daughter’s favorite person in the world. He knows that season has an expiration date, and instead of fighting it or brushing past it, he’s choosing to enjoy it fully.
That awareness runs through how he approaches both parenting and work.
How Fatherhood Changed His Career
Before becoming a dad, Tony didn’t realize how much parenting would reshape his relationship with touring. It didn’t end his career, but it did change how it feels.
He still tours, just less. Not because he can’t do it, but because he doesn’t love it the same way anymore. There’s more guilt now. More awareness of what he’s missing. In his words, it’s a total blessing, even if it comes with tradeoffs. He also notes, with dry humor, that the middle-class touring world has mostly disappeared anyway.
Fatherhood didn’t shrink his ambition. It refined it.
The Best Advice He Ever Got
The advice that stuck with Tony is short and absolute.
Never go against your wife’s motherly instincts. Ever. Not even a little.
It’s a reminder that partnership matters, and that parenting works best when trust runs both ways.
A Typical Dad Day
Tony describes his days as suburban bliss. Early mornings, coffee and breakfast, school drop-off, yoga if he’s lucky, then work. It’s not flashy. It’s steady.
When work, life, and family all collide, he admits he doesn’t juggle it gracefully. Balls get dropped. Chaos shows up. The key is getting better at picking things back up and riding the wave instead of fighting it. His wife, who he describes as wildly organized, is the anchor. Without her, the operation falls apart.
Yoga and meditation help too, but he’s clear about what really keeps things moving. Teamwork.
Dad Life Non-Negotiables
Tony’s non-negotiable is one every parent recognizes instantly. If his daughter wants a song repeated, he repeats it. Even when it’s annoying.
He remembers what it felt like to be obsessed with a song as a kid. That joy, that sense of wonder, matters more than convenience.
When he gets time alone, his guilty pleasure isn’t glamorous. He paints houses. It’s a survival job. Not very rock-and-roll. Extremely relaxing. Especially the part where he’s not broke.
Playing the Long Game
Tony’s story is a reminder that fatherhood doesn’t end creative ambition. It reframes it. The wins get quieter. The priorities shift. The meaning deepens.
He’s still writing songs. Still performing. Still building a life that works for this season.
You can follow Tony at @tonykamelmusic.
If you’ve ever caught yourself walking backwards down the sidewalk and wondered how you got there, there’s a good chance Ben Patrick is to blame.
Known to millions as the Knees Over Toes Guy, Ben Patrick didn’t rise to fame by chasing trends or flashy fitness hacks. He took off by doing the opposite. He shared his failures. Years of chronic knee pain. Surgeries that didn’t work. Training methods that left him worse off than before. Then he started rebuilding his body from the ground up and documenting what actually helped.
That honesty struck a nerve.
What started as unconventional rehab content quickly became a movement. Ben challenged long-held beliefs around knee health, mobility, and longevity, showing people that the joints most of us were told to protect were actually meant to get strong through full ranges of motion.
Suddenly, athletes, parents, and everyday guys were rethinking how they train, how they move, and how long they want their bodies to last.
And yes, a lot of us started walking backwards. Our neighbors are still confused.
From Rehab to Movement
Ben’s rise wasn’t overnight. It came from years of testing, teaching, and refining ideas that went against the grain. Instead of avoiding knee stress, he showed how to build resilience. Instead of accepting pain as inevitable, he made the case for rebuilding capacity.
His approach resonated because it wasn’t about aesthetics. It was about durability. Being able to run, jump, squat, and move well not just in your twenties, but decades later. For dads especially, that message hits different. Longevity matters when you want to keep up with your kids.
Today, Ben is one of the most recognizable voices in modern fitness, with a global audience and a training philosophy that’s influenced everyone from elite athletes to weekend warriors.
But at home, he’s just dad.
Dad of Two (Soon to Be Three)
Ben and his wife have two young kids, ages three and five, with a third on the way. Fatherhood has reshaped how he sees the world, and not always comfortably.
The hardest part of parenting for him has been realizing how poorly modern systems are set up for kids. The schedules. The environments. The lack of space to move, explore, and grow. Rather than accepting that as normal, Ben’s response has been patience and intention. Slowly building better setups and systems for his family, even if it takes time.
The most rewarding part has nothing to do with fitness or career wins. It’s the smallest moments. The little things his kids do that bring more joy than any physical achievement or professional milestone.
Before becoming a dad, he wishes he understood the importance of land, space, and family over cities, stuff, and outsourcing influence. That realization has shaped his long-term vision. He’s actively working toward moving to land in the coming years to create a simpler, more grounded environment for raising his kids.
A Realistic Dad Day
Ben doesn’t pretend his days are perfectly balanced. He calls it juggling, and he’s honest about the messiness.
Mornings often start with a dog walk before the kids wake up. Breakfast follows, then a fluid mix of parenting, work, and time with his wife and friends. There’s no perfect symmetry. Just seasons.
This year, he also volunteered to coach a high school basketball team. His kids often tag along, and while it’s not always convenient, it’s meaningful. He loves coaching kids and already knows he can’t wait to coach his own.
When work, life, and family all collide, Ben focuses on patience and building better systems instead of sweating the small stuff. His reset is simple. Get at least a couple workouts in for himself. Move his body. Clear his head.
What’s Non-Negotiable
Ben’s non-negotiables for dad life are refreshingly straightforward.
- Get outside.
- Take action.
- Practice good manners.
- Work hard at something meaningful.
- Love deeply.
When he gets time alone, there’s no elaborate hobby list. He works out. He plays basketball occasionally. That’s it.
And through it all, his perspective is grounded by a reminder many dads need to hear. The days are long, but the years are short. Put the work in now and you’ll be proud of it later.
Whether he’s rebuilding knees or building a family, Ben Patrick is playing the long game.
You can follow him at @kneesovertoesguy and @atgonlinecoaching
If you’ve ever seen a photo that made you want to quit your job, buy a Sprinter, and chase cold waves until your eyelashes freeze, chances are Chris Burkard took it. The world-famous photographer and filmmaker from Pismo Beach has turned remote landscapes into a global calling card. But behind the wild adventures is a dad with two boys who is still figuring out the playbook like the rest of us.
And that is exactly why this Q&A hits.
Who Is Chris Burkard (Beyond the Screensavers)
Burkard is the guy brands call when they need a shot of someone doing something incredible in a place most of us only see on postcards. His images show the edges of the world, but his life at home is surprisingly grounded. He is a surfer, a husband, and a dad trying to raise two boys with wonder instead of worry.
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The Q&A
When you ask Chris Burkard about the hardest part of parenting, he barely pauses. This is a man who has stood on icebergs and photographed storms, yet fatherhood still brought him to his knees in a way the Arctic never could. He told us the real challenge was accepting that he had no idea what he was doing and learning, slowly, that the early years he once feared were unappreciated were actually the moments that mattered most.
Chris grew up without a father, so he had no blueprint to follow. Every chapter he is writing now, he is writing for the first time. And the thing he learned early is this: showing up is the job.
Ask him about the rewards and his shoulders drop a little, the way people soften when they talk about the good stuff. For Chris, the payoff is watching his boys find joy. Not achievements or polished milestones.
Pure, unfiltered joy. Laughing together. Losing themselves in awe, even when the house feels chaotic. Coming from a guy who has chased awe across continents, it says something that the best version of it still happens in his living room.
If he could go back and tell his younger self something, it would be this: your kids might become your best friends.
It is a truth no one tells you when you’re knee deep in diapers, but it hits like a warm wave once you’re there.
One piece of advice stuck with him through the years. Someone once told him that being a dad is not an old man’s job. He carries that line like a compass. You don’t wait for the perfect moment, the perfect bank account, or the perfect career arc. You learn to parent in the mess. And sometimes the mess ends up being beautiful.
A typical day in the Burkard house reads exactly how you hope it might. He drops off his oldest son at school, then sneaks in an hour-long surf before the emails and projects take over. His wife handles the younger one’s school run. Midday is work. Afternoon folds into pickup, food, sports, more food, and the nightly wind-down.
For all the airports and expeditions, the rhythm at home is familiar to every dad. It is proof that even the world’s most adventurous photographer still spends half his life in the same cycle the rest of us do.
Balancing work, life, and family for Chris starts with a simple practice: knowing what he needs each day to show up well. Some days that means sleeping in. Other days it is a three-hour bike ride. The point, he says, is to advocate for your needs and communicate clearly with your partner. Burnout is real, and the best way to fight it is honesty.
His reset button is easy to imagine. The ocean. Even a few minutes in the water recalibrates him. It reminds him what matters.
The one non-negotiable in his dad life is time with his kids doing something that costs nothing. Teaching them how to have fun in nature. Passing down the kind of joy you cannot buy.
And when he is solo on the road, he laughs at himself a little. He admits he spends way too much on boujee snacks and great coffee. Every dad has a weakness. His just happens to taste better.
THE TAKEAWAY
Chris Burkard travels farther than most of us ever will, but his parenting philosophy is simple. Show up. Keep wonder alive. Invest in the moments that cost nothing and matter most. The world will always pull, but the real adventure is at home. Follow Chris here.
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
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.
Donald Scott is the kind of dad who makes you sit up a little straighter. A world-class triple jumper from Ft. Lauderdale. A coach. A trainer. A guy who built a career on speed, grit, and gravity-defying hops, yet says fatherhood is the real gold medal event.
If you follow track and field, you have watched him fly. If you follow fatherhood, you will want to hear him talk. Scott’s journey is not the polished, perfect dad story. It is the real kind. The kind built on long-distance parenting, purpose, and a six-year-old girl who changed everything.
Below is his story, crafted for our RAD DAD series. We highlight men who build a life worth copying.
The Hardest Part: Loving From a Distance
Donald does not sugarcoat it.
“Parenting from a distance was the hardest part.”
For years, he lived states away from his daughter. Flights, calls, and constant wondering if he was doing this parenting thing right. That question haunts a lot of dads, especially the ones who care the most.
But the second they are together?
“Everything clicks. I enter dad mode.”
Presence over perfection. It is the Dad Day way.
The Reward: Watching Her Grow Up Close Again
After three years away, Donald moved back.
You can feel the relief in his voice. School mornings. Homework. Lunch dates. Practice runs. Bedtime stories. The whole beautiful grind.
“The most rewarding part has been watching her development. Being back is so fulfilling.”
In the end, fatherhood is not about doing everything. It is about being there.
What He Wishes He Knew Before Becoming a Dad
This one hits hard, especially knowing Donald grew up without parents present.
“I wish somebody would have told me the kind of love that comes with a child. It is deeper than anything I can explain.”
He did not have the model. So he became one.
The Best Advice He Ever Got
“Do not be so quick to grow your child up. Allow them to be a child.”
Simple. True. A truth we repeat often: kids need space to be kids. They need patience, not perfection.
A Typical Dad Day for Donald Scott
Nothing fancy. Nothing curated. Just real dad life.
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Breakfast
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Dog out
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School drop-off
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Donald trains like the elite athlete he is
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Pickup
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Lunch
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Homework
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Dog time, play time, or something fun
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Sports practice now that she is getting started
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Dinner
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Shower
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A book
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Bedtime
It is the rhythm of a dad who shows up everywhere that matters.
How He Handles the Juggle
His answer says everything:
“My daughter goes wherever I go.”
-Track practice
-Physical therapy
-Coaching
-Meets
-Work
-Life chaos
She is not an obligation. She is part of the mission.
His Grounding Practice
Donald keeps one simple mantra on repeat.
“Remember your purpose.”
Purpose does not erase stress. Purpose organizes it.
His Non-Negotiable
“When my daughter needs me, whatever it may be, I am there.”
Family first is not an idea for him. It is a lifestyle.
When He Finally Has a Minute to Himself
He decompresses with simple joys.
-DJing
-Bowling
-A bar with good music
-Quiet time alone
A reminder that dads need hobbies too. Recharge equals better fatherhood.
Where to Follow Him
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IG and Twitter: @donaldscott_ll
Rad Dad Takeaway
Donald Scott reminds us that fatherhood is not about flawless execution. It is about fierce love, intentional presence, and rewriting the script you were handed.
He did not grow up with parents. His daughter is growing up with a great one.
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.
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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. 🎧👶🏼