“When you were younger, you were brash. You didn’t take crap. You didn’t keep quiet. If you disagreed, or didn’t like something, you said something. We hated hypocrites. We shook our head at the compromises that we saw older people make. We laughed at them for the way they settled. We were angry with our parents for their political and social beliefs. We were idealistic. They were conservative. It drove us nuts.” Ryan explains why you must learn to balance your ambition with your role as a paren...
Feb 01, 2021•3 min•Ep. 26
On today’s episode, Ryan has a wide-ranging conversation with professor and economist Emily Oster. They talk about how to balance your life with children, how to communicate positive messaging, how the American government handled the pandemic, and more. Emily Oster is a professor of economics at Brown University, as well as the bestselling author of several books. Her most recent book, Cribsheet , aims to help improve decision making during the early years of parenting. This episode is brought t...
Jan 30, 2021•53 min•Ep. 25
“Some parents want their kids to know how to read. We want more than that. We want our kids to be obsessed. We want them to hunger for books. We want them to read like they’re on a mission.” Ryan explains why you should teach your children to find great joy and insight in reading, on today’s Daily Dad podcast. *** If you enjoyed this week’s podcast, we’d love for you to leave a review on Apple Podcasts. It helps with our visibility, and the more people listen to the podcast, the more we can inve...
Jan 29, 2021•3 min•Ep. 24
“Florence Nightingale was a precocious child. As a toddler, she always went her own way. Then, unlike many girls her age at the time, she wasn’t interested in parties or getting married or fancy things. She wanted to do something different with her life.” Learn how the life of Florence Nightingale should teach you to let your kids grow into who they were meant to be, on today’s Daily Dad podcast. *** If you enjoyed this week’s podcast, we’d love for you to leave a review on Apple Podcasts. It he...
Jan 28, 2021•2 min•Ep. 23
“No person has a perfect track record. Certainly, no parent does. We all mess up. We all fall short. We get our priorities wrong. We make mistakes. We lose our temper and our patience. We all handle certain situations in ways we wish we hadn’t.” Ryan discusses why holding onto your past mistakes is a recipe for disaster, and why you should always strive to get better, on today’s Daily Dad podcast. *** If you enjoyed this week’s podcast, we’d love for you to leave a review on Apple Podcasts. It h...
Jan 27, 2021•3 min•Ep. 22
“When Cato’s son Marcus fell at the second battle of Philippi in 42 BCE, his final act was to shout his father’s name. When Cato’s daughter Porcia wanted to prove her mettle to the conspirators as they plotted against Caesar, she simply told her husband, ‘I am Cato’s daughter.’” Ryan explains why you should live the principles and values that you want your children to live up to, on today’s Daily Dad podcast. This episode was brought to you by Magic Spoon. Magic Spoon makes delicious cereal just...
Jan 26, 2021•3 min•Ep. 21
“It is obvious, in retrospect, why some of the towering figures of the 20th century were who they were. Stalin. Hitler. Mao. Even Churchill. They had formative, even horrible childhoods that propelled them to seek power, made them ruthless and cunning, ambitious and even the worst of them, brilliant at times.” Learn why your kids don’t have to come from painful circumstances to be great, on today’s Daily Dad podcast. *** If you enjoyed this week’s podcast, we’d love for you to leave a review on ...
Jan 25, 2021•3 min•Ep. 20
Ryan speaks with Dr. Harvey Karp, a parenting expert and inventor of the SNOO Sleep System, about how people prepare for parenthood, the benefits of seeking out parenting expertise, and more. Dr. Harvey Karp is a pediatrician and the creator of the SNOO Sleep System. Dr. Karp is a fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics and teaches pediatrics at USC’s Keck School of Medicine. He has achieved renown for his methods that help infants quickly and safely go to sleep. Get the SNOO Sleep System: ...
Jan 23, 2021•34 min•Ep. 19
“The writer Susan Straight was helping her mother move, when she found an old painting thrown in the trash can. Sensing that this wasn’t something that her mother had bought, she asked her about it. ‘I took a painting class at the YMCA,’ her mother explained. ‘Then I found a book—teach yourself to paint. My mother was an artist. She made beautiful sketches of our garden and our house in Switzerland.’” Ryan explains the reason why you should continually cultivate your interests and hobbies as a p...
Jan 22, 2021•3 min•Ep. 18
“You’re a patient person. You don’t get road rage. You don’t snap at your employees. You accept apologies when offered. You treat strangers well. Because these are the rules of polite society. Because this is the secret to success in business and life.” Ryan discusses how proximity affects how you treat people, and why you should learn to control your temper, on today’s Daily Dad podcast. *** If you enjoyed this week’s podcast, we’d love for you to leave a review on Apple Podcasts. It helps with...
Jan 21, 2021•3 min•Ep. 17
“Maybe your kid is into weird stuff. Maybe their heavy metal band sucks--or their talents as a white MC are almost offensive. Maybe you can’t stand the shows they like, or maybe their dream is an unlikely one at best.” Learn why you should cheer your kids on while nurturing and respecting their interests, on today’s Daily Dad podcast. *** If you enjoyed this week’s podcast, we’d love for you to leave a review on Apple Podcasts. It helps with our visibility, and the more people listen to the podc...
Jan 20, 2021•3 min•Ep. 16
“We all know that what we went through in life is what made us who we are. The breakups, the failures, the losses and the mistakes. Some of us grew up poor. Others grew up rich but with absent parents. Others grew up around addiction or dysfunction.” Ryan discusses the delicate balance between protecting and restraining your children, on today’s Daily Dad podcast. *** If you enjoyed this week’s podcast, we’d love for you to leave a review on Apple Podcasts. It helps with our visibility, and the ...
Jan 19, 2021•3 min•Ep. 15
“When Charles Lindbergh was thinking about attempting the first transatlantic flight, he ran into an issue. It wasn’t that he had very little money. It wasn’t that he was a nobody. It wasn’t even that he hadn’t flown more than a few hours in one stop before. It wasn’t even that others who had tried it had died.” Ryan discusses the one skill that that transcends all others, and why you must show it to your kids, on today’s Daily Dad podcast. *** If you enjoyed this week’s podcast, we’d love for y...
Jan 18, 2021•3 min•Ep. 14
On today's long episode of the Daily Dad Podcast, Ryan and Nils talk about how to create and maintain the right environment in your home—one where your kids are always happy to hear you coming home from work. The Stoic Parent is a 10-day course that will help you become the best parent you can be. Each day you receive a new challenge with exercises and advice that will guide you to raising your kids the best way. Learn more at dailystoic.com/stoicparent/ . *** If you enjoyed this week’s podcast,...
Jan 16, 2021•26 min•Ep. 13
“As you’ve gotten older, it’s been harder to deny: People can be awful. Institutions let you down. The world will break your heart. There is such thing as evil. There is too much of it out there.” Learn why it’s okay to protect your kids from the evil in the world, so long as you sell them on this, on today’s Daily Dad podcast. *** If you enjoyed this week’s podcast, we’d love for you to leave a review on Apple Podcasts. It helps with our visibility, and the more people listen to the podcast, th...
Jan 15, 2021•3 min•Ep. 12
“You love them. It feels good to get them things. It feels good to spoil them even. Especially if you’re someone who works a lot, who feels guilty about mistakes they’ve made, who carry wounds from their own childhood.” Ryan discusses the delicate balancing act that you must practice, even when showing your kids affection, on today’s Daily Dad podcast. *** If you enjoyed this week’s podcast, we’d love for you to leave a review on Apple Podcasts. It helps with our visibility, and the more people ...
Jan 14, 2021•2 min•Ep. 11
“Like any reasonable adult, you’ve got opinions about the world. How the country should be run. What courage looks like in a politician. What a great coach does, what’s expected of an athlete in crunchtime, what loyalty they owe to the team. Maybe you think budgets should be balanced, maybe you really admire the boldness of certain entrepreneurs and think the world needs more of them.” Ryan explains why the most important place to employ your opinion is in your home, on today’s Daily Dad podcast...
Jan 13, 2021•3 min•Ep. 10
“Your kids screwed up. They failed a test. They forgot their homework. They hit their brother. They scratched your car and lied about it. They got caught drinking. They got caught cheating. Worse, yet, you have talked to them about these things so many times. ” Learn why it’s imperative that you practice patience and discipline with your children, on today’s Daily Dad podcast. *** If you enjoyed this week’s podcast, we’d love for you to leave a review on Apple Podcasts. It helps with our visibil...
Jan 12, 2021•3 min•Ep. 9
“You want your kids to be successful. You want them to be ambitious . You want them to fulfill the potential you see in them. Every parent does. You have this idea of where you think you ought to go… and then of course, they have other ideas.” Ryan discusses why you should help your children realize who they were meant to be, on today’s Daily Dad podcast. *** If you enjoyed this week’s podcast, we’d love for you to leave a review on Apple Podcasts. It helps with our visibility, and the more peop...
Jan 11, 2021•3 min•Ep. 8
On the first longform episode of the Daily Dad podcast, author Ryan Holiday and editor Nils Parker discuss the unique challenges they've faced as parents during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Stoic Parent is a 10-day course that will help you become the best parent you can be. Each day you receive a new challenge with exercises and advice that will guide you to raising your kids the best way. Learn more at dailystoic.com/stoicparent/ . *** If you enjoyed this week’s podcast, we’d love for you to lea...
Jan 09, 2021•35 min•Ep. 7
“When he was a young teenager, Lewis Puller Jr. got himself an afternoon paper route. It was one of those things that his parents insisted on so he could learn responsibility and hard work and all that. And it was certainly good for that. It was also good for something even better. One day, Lewis’ bike got a flat tire, so his dad (Chesty Puller, the most decorated Marine in US history) drove him on the route. The next day, it rained, so Chesty did it again. On the third day, Lewis’ dad got the c...
Jan 08, 2021•2 min•Ep. 6
“You clean and the house is dirty. You do the dishes and then five minutes later, the sink is full again. Literally before you’ve even finished helping them put their toys away, they’re splayed out across the floor. The new clothes you just bought them are now filthy and frayed. This can drive you nuts. Or you can learn to love it.” Ryan explains that raising is an art that shouldn’t be taken for granted on today’s Daily Dad podcast. *** If you enjoyed this week’s podcast, we’d love for you to l...
Jan 07, 2021•2 min•Ep. 5
“If you’re not careful, their whole lives get filled up. Soccer practice. School. Cello lessons. Chores are home. After all, you don’t want them in front of screens all day. You want them to make something of themselves. You don’t want them to waste their life or fall behind.” Learn how to be mindful of your kids time and schedule, and why it’s your responsibility to protect them from burnout, on today’s Daily Dad podcast. *** If you enjoyed this week’s podcast, we’d love for you to leave a revi...
Jan 06, 2021•2 min•Ep. 4
“You’re angry. That’s understandable. Your boss has been awful. The contractor still hasn’t finished fixing the bathroom. You just spilled coffee on your shirt. Or maybe it’s one of those days with the kids: One kid lied to you about doing their homework. The other talked back to their mother. A third still made scrambled eggs and forgot to turn the stove off. ” Ryan discusses a Stoic tactic for taming your temper, and how to turn hard moments into lessons for your kids, on today’s Daily Dad pod...
Jan 05, 2021•3 min•Ep. 3
“We picked up our political beliefs somewhere. From books we read, from how we grew up, from what we’ve seen in the world. We got started in our industry for so many reasons--luck, a natural inclination, because the money seemed good.” Learn why you should be actively revising your perspective on life, and how to teach your kids to do the same thing, on today’s Daily Dad podcast. *** If you enjoyed this week’s podcast, we’d love for you to leave a review on Apple Podcasts. It helps with our visi...
Jan 04, 2021•2 min•Ep. 2
“When Bessie Carter, President Jimmy Carter’s mother, was 68 years old, she saw an ad on television for the Peace Corps that said ‘Age is no barrier.’ So she joined. Almost 70 years old, she went to India and taught nutrition and family planning!” Learn how Jimmy Carter’s mother inspired him to never stop making a difference, even when the clock was ticking, on today’s Daily Dad podcast. *** If you enjoyed this week’s podcast, we’d love for you to leave a review on Apple Podcasts. It helps with ...
Jan 01, 2021•2 min•Ep. 1
“We talked recently about Springsteen’s choice for parents: Will you be an ancestor or a ghost? Haunt them or help them? The story he tells about how he came to this understanding comes from his own struggles with his own father. As he explained on Broadway, when he and his wife were expecting their first kid, his father--who had always been distant and harsh--drove something like five hundred miles and showed up at Bruce’s door.” Ryan uses the example of Bruce Springsteen’s father to explain wh...
Dec 31, 2020•3 min•Ep. 261
“You’re stressed. You’re busy. You have so much on your plate. Time to read? Other than kids books? Get out of here. Except maybe the latter is the solution to the former. If you want to be less stressed, you gotta make time for yourself--to read, to think, to learn. The great William Osler (founder of John Hopkins University) told his medical students it was important that they turn to literature as a way to nourish and relax their minds. ‘When chemistry distresses your soul,’ he said, ‘seek pe...
Dec 30, 2020•3 min•Ep. 260
“After a long and arduous hunt, Theodore Roosevelt finally got the bull caribou he had been tracking. ‘It was one of those moments,’ he later wrote, ‘that repay the hunter for days of toil and hardship; that is if he needs repayment, and does not find life in the wilderness pleasure enough in itself.’” Ryan explains why we should always focus on the present moment, because it’s where the true reward lies, on today’s Daily Dad podcast. We created the New Year, New You Challenge to help you create...
Dec 29, 2020•3 min•Ep. 259
“This whole thing can go by so fast. Because you have so much going on. Because you feel like you’re barely keeping your head above water. It’s understandable, but if you don’t slow down and wrap your head around this parenting thing, you can end up missing so much that matters.” Ryan explains why you should pay close attention to the time you spend with you kids, and how you can make the most out of it, on today’s Daily Dad podcast. We created the New Year, New You Challenge to help you create ...
Dec 28, 2020•3 min•Ep. 258
