7 Reasons Father-Daughter Relationships Need To Be Strong

father-daughter-relationships-strongNot every little child is lucky enough to grow up with positive parental relationships. Maybe you were one of those children, as an effect, you want to be the best parent you can be for your child. You want your children to grow up having phenomenal, loving and close relationships with you and your spouse. You want to teach your child as much as you can and influence their life in all the ways you know how, so that they grow up knowing they were so loved, and can make wise decisions on their own when the time comes. As a mother, you want to teach your child right from wrong, and be quick to give them your best advice (maybe you’ve learned it on your own), and to be open and as true to her as you can be. As a father, you teach better through your actions. You want to teach your children the way to treat their partners, siblings, children and friends with respect by showing up to important events. Particularly as a father, you want to teach your daughter to feel safe and protected and strong. We can’t stress enough how important the impact a father has on his daughter’s life; how it gives them perspective on how they see life, how they treat others, how they expect to be treated, and how they perceive and appreciate themselves. There are so many reasons why great fathers raise great daughters from positive father-daughter relationships cultivated from early on. Here are some of those very important reasons for daddies to build strong relationships with their little girls.  

1. Dad’s Are The Most Influential Figure In Their Daughter’s Livesfather-daughter-relationships-beach

When dads share those positive words and actions of encouragement with their daughters to dream big and make the sky the limit, they empower their daughters for brighter successful futures. Give them positive words of encouragement to help them build their self esteem, and believe they’re as awesome as you believe they are.  Not only do  father-daughter relationships have a huge impact by being an encouraging role models for their daughters, but the specific words that dads say matter too. Every little comment matters, even if those comments are about other people. You have a strong influence on your daughter’s self image. Tell your daughters how beautiful they are to help them develop a loving self-image, and remind them how much more important inner-beauty is than outward. Keep in mind that your daughters are eagerly listening to everything you say; be careful what you say about other women with your daughters around.  They could very well internalize what they overhear you saying about that so-and-so movie star being overweight, or not pretty enough, and start to wonder if that applies to them too.

father-daughter-relationships-dad2. Set The Bar For Ambition & Drive

For many successful women looking back at their childhoods, growing up with positive relationships with their fathers had a lot to do with the way they perceived the world later on. When their dads told them to set their minds to something, anything was possible – and they believed it with ambitious intent to succeed. Having those empowering figures of positive support helps little girls grow up with the mindset and the drive to pursue their dreams. It’s important for fathers to realize the impact they have on their daughters’ lives from an early age; to never underestimate the influence they have on their daughter’s determination and focus to set goals and dreams for themselves. While a support system for children should come from many different special people in their lives, like mothers, teachers and peers, it’s imperative that little girls hear it from their fathers. Fathers are the most influential supportive figures in their little girl’s lives.

3. Set the Bar for How Dates Should Treat Their Daughtersfather-daughter-relatonships-married

When the time comes for your daughter to date, (and believe us, it will probably come sooner than you’re ready for!) it’s important to set a standard for what they should expect from the lucky candidate. It’s your responsibility to set the bar high. Father-daughter relationships involve making time for daddy daughter dates when they’re little girls and pre-teens will help them know how to act as a date and to understand how dates should go. Opening doors for her, striking up good conversation and respectfully treating her in your daddy daughter date will give them a foreshadow into their dating future. Having daddy and daughter dates will give her a natural expectation for anyone interested in dating her.

4. If A Dad Cares About His Daughter, She Will Care For Herself

Simply put, if you are involved in your daughter’s life, and you act like she matters, she will believe that she matters. It’s really not very complicated; show up. Be there for her when she needs you, and even when she doesn’t. Try your best to be at every basketball game, ballet recital and parent-teacher conference.  It’s one of the single most important things you can do as a father for your daughter is to just show up. Of course you’re going to want to fix all of her problems for her (it’s part of being a dad). What’s more important than finding her solutions for her is listening to her when she needs someone to hear her out, making sure that she knows you’re going to love her unconditionally. Be at the big events, the small events and even the ones where you aren’t sure what to do (is it appropriate to shout “that’s my baby!” when she wins the spelling bee?) will show her that she matters to you, and in turn, she will believe she matters.

5. Dad’s With High Self-Esteem Have Daughters With High Self-Esteemfather-daughter-relationships-daughter

How can you raise a confident daughter without first being confident in your own skin? Low self esteem isn’t hereditary, after all. Even though you can’t keep their futures from repeatedly throwing rejection in their beautiful little faces (it’s something we all learn from it), you can keep yourself from showing them any self criticism. Without your daughter having the option of destructive low self-esteem, studies show that she’ll have an easier time loving herself. But what if you can’t show high self-esteem because you just aren’t there yet?  Even if it’s not yet possible for you to internally change your own self esteem, it’s important to demonstrate appreciation for the right things as their role model when you’re around her. You don’t have to be a “perfect” role model, but by encouraging the strengths she should love herself for (we’re talking about hard work, generosity, and empathy), you remind her to always love herself first, and always. Embrace yourself for the right things, and as your self esteem grows, theirs, in turn, will too. You want them to think they’re awesome? Show them you think you’re awesome by being a good role model, and working on positive father-daughter relationships with high esteem and eventually your self esteem will shine brightly for all to see and so will your daughter’s.

6. Dad’s Provide Safety, Security, & A Sense of Protection

There’s a fine line to being that sense of security for them, and being way too overprotective. While none of us intend on being “helicopter parents”, at times, it can happen because we just want to protect them from all the evil in the world. Particularly as they enter their teenage years, when everyone is confused, they’ll probably roll their eyes at you when they think you’re barging in. Even if she’s a bit embarrassed (or confused, did we mention how confusing teenage years can be?) she will feel extremely lucky and appreciative understanding that her dad has her back. She’ll know that no matter what, she can call you day or night and you’ll come to the rescue or give her the right advice when she needs it. You’ll be that safe, secure sense of protection for her when things go wrong or feels scared and lost. Protecting your daughter is what dad’s do best.

7. Daughter’s Mimic Their Father’s Valuesfather-daughter-relationships-dads

Your little girl will mimic what they believe their dad believes. This also goes the opposite direction; daughters will see what you fail to believe, too. All of the values you display are going to have that “monkey see, monkey do” affect on your daughter. In many ways, you want your children to be raised with your values in mind, but it’s important to realize how those values are going to be passed on. By respecting women and valuing them properly, your daughter will value herself. Potentially, she’ll also empower other women to feel their value and to uphold their self-worth. If you value loyalty, respect, and trust, your daughters will grow up with those values and take them to heart. Show your daughter that you value women as human beings; not as people to be used or disrespected. You want her to feel worthy of respect and value, don’t you? Teach her these values by demonstrating them yourself, and she will grow up strong-willed, demanding respect and value from all who cross her path.

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Martin Rovers