What is some of the best advice your father ever gave you?, Storyworth question, 499 words

When I think of my father and the advice he gave me, I think of the phrase, “If you are going to do something, do it right.” I thank him to this day for this advice. If something is worth doing, then you should put your full effort into it. This piece of advice has driven my life, yet, when my sister mentioned to him how important that advice was to us, he responded by saying he didn’t remember ever saying that. Both of us agree that he said it often enough to have had a profound effect on each of us.

I think a lot of my dad’s advice was given through his example. He was a fair and honest man who tried to promote good. He taught and lived by the Golden Rule and seemed wise in his decisions. He had a strong sense of right and wrong, and he taught us children to follow our conscience. 

Another piece of advice he gave me was to always finish what you started. I learned that if I wanted to sign up for something, such as Little League or Boy Scouts, then I should try to do my best and there was no question as to whether or not I would continue. As an example, I was a newspaper boy, starting when I was 11 years-old. It was nice because I always had money, but it was a pain to always have to be at the newspaper pickup point every afternoon, except Sunday. I finally had enough of this job when I was a sophomore in high school. However, my parents wouldn’t let me quit. If I didn’t have a compelling reason to stop, then I must continue. I finally decided to go out for the JV basketball team, even though I wasn’t that good at basketball. My plan worked, because I could now quit my news carrier job because it conflicted with basketball practice. My plan did backfire, however, when I actually made the team. I now had to attend basketball practice every afternoon and pretend I knew what I was doing.

I always valued and respected my dad’s opinion, although I’m not sure I ever told him that. I could tell that other people also respected my dad. He was always a grounding force as I was growing up that I could depend on.

Brian

My Dad wasn’t the type to offer much advice.   He mostly showed me how to live by the example he set.  He was very honest, tried his best and loved his family.  He did help me to realize I should open my mind to consider more view points than just my own.  He told me to always have a dime with me so I could call him collect if I needed to.  He told me to call him anytime from anywhere.  He was very sweet to me.

Mary Lou