Now that your child is born, you must be wondering what role you will be playing in his life. Common questions like, “Will I need to change nappies?” or “Do I need to feed the baby?”, will certainly come to play in your mind.
Nowadays, with the majority of women going out and building a career for themselves, their role is no longer fixed to that of a stay at home mom. So, with the partner also working, the man is expected to play an even bigger role in the household.
What model of fatherhood you choose to play must suit everyone – yourself, your partner and your child. Your skills combined with your partner’s skills will ensure that your child has an all-rounded upbringing.
Some of the roles you may choose to play are:
• You want to shoulder the childcare responsibility equally.
• You want to help around the house, completing household chores like cooking and cleaning.
• You want to have equal say on all matters or issues relating to the child.
• You only want to play your dad role during the weekends.
• You do not mind to ‘babysit’ your child but hates to do the housework.
• You want your partner to take care of everything related to childcare and you will help out only when you are free.
• You are only interested to do the fun things with your child and leave the serious matters to your partner.
As you can see, there are multiple roles that you can take on. As a new dad, you may have to rethink about your priorities, to ensure you get to play the role that you want. Besides work responsibilities and marriage responsibilities, you now have parenting responsibilities. Therefore, to find a happy work-life balance, set your priorities clear and discuss with your partner about your role.
Are you a dad already? What role are you currently playing in your child’s life?