There is exactly one month left before my first child, a daughter, is due to be born. Am I ready? Who knows. Is anyone ever ready? I suppose what will happen will happen.

It is strange though, going to be a father. A big part of me feels that I was made for this. I’ve always wanted to be a dad and thought I would make a good one. But it is all just an idea right now. I have no idea what to expect; I just expect to (try to) roll with the punches.

I am the first father of the next generation of my family. I think my daughter has a chance to be extraordinary and way better than the rest of us. I will support her in anything she wants to do, I just want her to have passion and be bold. My ultimate goal is to give her the platform and courage to do so.

That word “courage” is something we all should think about more than we do. The Latin root of the word is “cor” which means “heart,” as seen in the Spanish word for heart, “corazon.” To be courageous, then, can be seen as someone who speaks from, or acts with, his or her heart.

This behavior is what I have dedicated my life to recently and I work every day to implement a pattern of operating from the heart. I suppose I have always had it in me, but trust me it takes constant practice to maintain.

When I was headed into the school on my first day of Kindergarten, I didn’t know what to expect and I was scared. My mom often recalls the look of dread on my face when I turned back to look at her. She waved and smiled, assuring me all would be fine. Still scared, I turned back towards the double doors of Eastern Elementary and trudged my way through into the unknown. As soon as my backpack disappeared into the hallway, my mom buckled over in tears.

Many parents seek to instill a sense of self-confidence in their children. While a high self-esteem may seem desirable, it is ego-based and can actually lead to problems later in the “real world.” It sets up an unrealistic fear of failure. Small mistakes, let alone big ones, can be crippling. We need to fail, we need to make mistakes. This is how we get better. If we have an over inflated sense of self, we may be scared to try something if we aren’t 100% sure we will succeed. Operating out of fear does not help us move forward.

To operate at our best, we also need to know that we don’t actually know much. We need to be open-minded to the fact that someone else might have a better idea. This is how we work with others better — a trait that all of us need when we enter our adult lives. Many times our egos will keep us in a negative position or thought pattern just so we can prove who is right instead of what is right. We need to have the courage to be wrong, make mistakes, and be open to new ideas. That is the way to the truth.

Selflessness, humility, and true courage are traits not easy to come by. Like anything that makes us better people, we have to make it part of our regimen and work hard to maintain the pattern. Eventually, it becomes second nature.

I think that my own journey through fear and ego will help me be a better father. After all, it’s my first time around on this parenthood thing, and I’m sure I’ll be smacked in the face quickly with all that I don’t know. But I know that I have the courage to make mistakes and learn from them.

My daughter, known as “BB” for now, will soon come home to a big blue map hanging on the wall with the words “She set out to conquer the world.” written below it.

Be bold, young BB, and let your heart lead the way.


Picture via Rain Bennett

Rain Bennett is a two time Emmy-nominated filmmaker, fitness professional, public speaker, and writer. His mission is simple: to help people realize that they too can be great, no matter where they come from or what they start with. It just takes passion, persistence, and a plan.

Bennett directed and produced his first feature length documentary in true indie fashion by traveling the world with only a backpack and a Canon DSLR camera. That film, Raise Up: The World is Our Gym won “Best of the Fest” at the Hip Hop Film Festival NYC and received global distribution through Red Bull Media House. He’s been featured in publications like Men’s Health and Sports Business Global and is a regular contributor to Breaking Muscle. When he’s not making movies or training clients at Sync Studio in Durham, he’s hosting a new webseries called The Perfect Workout Show.