D A D B L O G S
A dad blog by a geek dad with two geeky kids.
Research shows that people who have more personal resources like hope, optimism, and resilience are able to find and maintain a better balance between job demands and resources. These people usually use these same personal resources to find sources of passion and joy both at and outside of work. The great news about personal resources is that they are like a renewable source of energy. The most powerful way we can renew them is by improving our well-being. Peace - This aspect of well-being is characterized by a sense of meaning and purpose in life that leads to calmness, balance, and feeling connected to something larger than ourselves. For many, organized religion is a powerful source of peace, but others find peace in other ways, including through the work they do. Adaptation - This includes the attitudes we adopt, the values we hold, and our behaviors to maintain balance and productivity in our work, especially in the face of disruptive change. When our adaptation level is high, we are both flexible and focused. We feel confident we can overcome obstacles and get the job done despite ambiguity. Ask yourself if you adapt quickly to unexpected changes, persevere when faced with a problem, take responsibility to build my knowledge and skills. Control - This involves both our ability to achieve the goals we've set and our sense that we have the right support network. It includes using our own personal interests, attitudes, and self-management techniques to help us enjoy our work, boost our performance, and make positive change(s) in our work environment. Assess yourself if you spend time and energy focusing on problems you can control, not on things I cannot control; if you monitor your performance and look for ways to improve; and if you reward myself for attaining goals with pleasurable activities. Physical Energy - This is about a state of feeling truly healthy, not just simply having no symptoms of disease. Being physically well and having a high level of energy involves many lifestyle choices. The choices we make either contribute to a strong, healthy, and fit body that lasts a long time and resists sickness, or it leads to an unwell body that is susceptible to fatigue, stress, illness, and disease. Do you exercise for at least 20 minutes, three times per week? Do you drink at least eight glasses of water each day? Do you eat at least five servings of fruits and vegetables per day?
A car is one of the few things you will use frequently in your lifetime. This is the reason why many people buy the car that best suits their needs. Owning your dream car can be a pleasurable experience or a nightmare, depending on how you take care of your vehicle. Here are some things you should to ensure your car stays in tip top shape.
1) Wash your car regularly. Failing to wash your car on a regular basis won't cause instant damage to it. However, leaving acid rain, dirt and grease on your car for a long time can result in chipped paint and wrecked metal. You will need to wash your car at least three times a month if you live in a place where there's a lot of pollution and sea salt. During the winter, if you drive along the roadways, you might need to wash your car more often than that to get rid off the accumulation. 2) Change your oil every 5,000 to 7,500 miles. Different cars have different guidelines about oil but their makers all agree that it is best to change oil on a regular basis. If you don't this, dirt can build up and to kill your engine. Change your oil at least once a month and choose a synthetic oil which is easier to buy at any shop. 3) Check tyre pressure. Maintaining proper tyre pressure will keep you safe and will help you save $350 to $700. Incorrect tire pressure can lead to poor brakes, instability, less gas mileage and a flat tyre. Check your tyre pressure with a gauge. Also, make sure that your tyres wear evenly by rotating them regularly. The pressure gauge costs $10 while the rotation costs around $50. 4) Consider cosmetic collision repairs. No matter how carefully you drive, your car's appearance can get damaged due to frequent use and exposure to the outdoors. You can have its pristine look retained through cosmetic collision repairs. Learn more about this kind of car repair by reading the detailed infographic below. From Visually.
5) Have your brakes checked. Let the professionals do the checking. A grinding noise could mean loss of brake power at high temperatures. Neglecting the condition of your brake pads can cause your brake rotors to fail. Moreover, this can lead to unwanted accidents.
Are you looking for other ways to care for your car? Get its manual and take the time to read it. You can also ask other dads for ideas or look for car maintenance blogs for tips and tricks. Almost every dad blogger I know has a list of his 'must-read books for dad'. Oh well, I have one too. In this post, I want to share with you the books I've read as a new dad, the books I'm currently reading and the books I read to my kids. So if you're ready, my list begins now.
ho doesn't want to be a great dad? We all want to be the kind of dad our kids love and respect. But with all the responsibilities we need to accomplish, we barely have the attention and time to make this as a primary goal in our parenting lives. Nevertheless, we should strive to be one because our kids' future are dependent on the kind of dads we are to them.
Build a strong relationship with your kids. Child psychologists say that your connection with your kids should start from the time they were born. So if you have a newborn in the family start bonding with your baby as early as now. It's not yet too late to start with your young and/or teenage kids though. Manage your time and find ways to prioritize them always. Avoid being punitive. Punishing kids for every misdeeds they make can harm your relationship with them. Actually, no parent-child relationship is born in such a set-up. Guide them in a positive way. Encourage them to do good in school, to behave at all times, to love their siblings, etc. in a supportive manner. By doing these, your kids will blossom into adulthood and your relationship with them with all the goodness you could ever imagine. Don't give rifts a chance in your relationship. Do you feel like your kids are always pushing you away? Don't withdraw from gaining their attention and cooperation back unless you're going to use it as a strategy. Treat every instance as an opportunity for you to be closer to them. Be available for them all the time. Kids open up and share their thoughts in a relaxed environment. Try your best to show your kids that you have the time and energy to listen to their stories without judging them. If you become successful at this, you will find them looking for you - and not for their friends and other people - when there's something important they need to share. Have you been a stay at home dad for a while and now returning to the workforce? Yes? You might feel anxious that your job search and job interview skills are all rusty now. Don't fret too much. Read these insights that can help you get started with it.
1) Prepare your resume. Apart from mentioning in your resume your employment experiences before you became a stay at home dad, you must include in it any volunteer work or academic and extra-curricular activities you've accomplished with your kids. This has nothing to do with your employment skills. But this gives your prospective employer an idea of your soft skills and about how meaningful you've spent your time. 2) Ask the help of everybody. Let all your family members, friends, acquaintances and neighbors know that you're looking for a job. This is something you shouldn't be ashamed about. You will have a bigger chance of getting more employment opportunities if everybody helps. 3) Join professional organizations. This is key to knowing people in your profession. They can provide valuable recommendations for your job hunt. Moreover, these organizations provide free seminars and training sessions that help you improve and learn new skills. That would be good to see in your resume. 4) Share what you've learned from staying at home for some time. Since you've been dealing with your kids and the chores for some time, you're most likely to have a lot of patience when accomplishing tasks. Also, you might have mastered time management and some organizational skills. These could all be a plus when you're applying for a job. 5) Practice patience. If you left a top position some years ago, you cannot expect to get back to the same position and salary range when you get back to work today. You can choose to stay at the job hunt stage a little longer until a suitable employment opportunity comes. Or, you can take a lower or entry position at the moment and work your way back to the top. Both situations will require extreme patience on your part. And I finish my post with this fortune cookie message: |
Hey there. My name is Jim. I'm a dad & I know some dad stuff & I like to write about them here. More about me.
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