THE 15th tip in the 31 days to becoming a better dad is to encourage your children to follow their dreams.

As far as I'm concerned, the job of a parent is to raise adults, not kids. Part of raising a good adult is to teach them while they are a child to follow their dreams and to take the risks needed to make them a reality.

Adults that are chasing their dreams are far happier and satisfied with life than those that don't. Personally, I know that is the difference between being unhappy and being happy for me. Ever since taking destiny into my own hands, my whole outlook on life has changed.

I didn't get much support chasing my dreams when I was younger, and perhaps that's why I didn't really have any in the first place. I was content to be mediocre despite my superior performance in school. To my parents' credit, once I figured out what my dreams were and started taking the steps to get there, they have been very supportive.

It feels great having their support and knowing I can talk to them about things when they aren't going as smooth as I'd like. Their encouragement makes me see that I'm not alone and that makes taking the journey that much easier.

Great dads will make sure their children know they support their goals from the time they know what goals are and have confident children that know they can reach their dreams. And when they do, my bet is the first person they will thank is you.

DAD TALK