Dad jeans, dad jokes, dad bods. Dad advice? Call it what you want. Words of wisdom, life lessons, their two cents. We prefer to lovingly refer to these little nuggets of advice as “dad sayings.”
We find it funny how many of the dad sayings that used to make us cringe now make more sense to us as we’ve gotten older. For some of us, we’ve come to see the wisdom in our own lives. For those of us who are fathers, we find ourselves handing out the same advice we used to receive.
Whether he’s the authoritative father, the breadwinner who’s off to work at the crack of dawn, or the new generation of dad who works from home and knows all the new trends and technology.
Dad sayings are universal.
The team got together to talk about the dad sayings that have helped mold us into the people we are today.
“If you need help or have a question, ask.” – Marc
In the end, if you don’t ask for help you’ll never get it. Early in my career, I thought I needed to know how to do everything and be able to handle it all on my own. So I was afraid to ask questions or for help when I needed it. I thought asking would show weakness, but have since learned it shows strength. I’m not sure why I didn’t listen to this advice that I now give – funny how we change as we get older.
“Never quit. Follow through and finish what you start.” – Alex
I would say that this advice has made me more selective about how I spend my time. This helps me trim the fat and focus on what I really want to be doing—it also helps me finish what I start, and ultimately, end up with better results.
“If you can’t say it in 5 minutes it’s not worth saying.” – Jamie
Usually, he’d say this to get us off the phone because call waiting didn’t exist. But even now, I see this reflected in how I handle current conversations. Get to the point!
“Celebrate each other’s success.” – Angie
Growing up, my dad would constantly tell my sisters and me to celebrate each other when one of us had won or achieved something, even if it meant that we had lost. It used to drive us crazy, but looking back now it taught me how to win humbly and lose gracefully.
“Problem, problem, who’s got the problem?” – Dan
When my brother and I would fight, and we’d come to our dad yelling and pointing fingers at each other, he’d say this dreaded line. Back then I felt like he was being a neglectful parent when he’d say this, but now I see he was forcing us to work out our differences and let go of petty issues. And as much as it pains me, I sometimes find myself saying this to my kids today. Naturally, they roll their eyes at me just like I did to my dad. But someday they’ll see the wisdom in forcing them to work out their differences. And I get a little more peace and quiet.
“If it’s worth doing, then it’s worth doing right.” – Casaundra
If something is worth your time, then give it your best effort and do it right and do it fully. The first time. Those wise words have encouraged me to work hard in whatever I’m doing so I can be proud of my work, instead of wasting my time on a half-assed job.
“Do great work, clean up when you’re finished.” – Ward
I think about this almost daily. Whether it be a small chore at home, or how we run DW. If I see trash on the ground, I pick it up. When we vet DW projects, we make sure there’s a benefit to society beyond paychecks.
Happy Father’s Day from DW! May it be filled with all the dad sayings you never thought you’d agree with, let alone start saying yourself.