Character in How to Be a Real Man

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How to apologize to your child without losing authority

The apology most dads give is really a second lecture. Here's a version that works, and what it actually costs you.

GuideBoys & GirlsSam Ortiz23 Sept 20265 min

Stop Rescuing Your Kids From Boredom

The whining is the toll booth, not the destination. What to say, what to stock the house with, and why the first two weeks are so loud.

Ask BRO

Build me a 30-day training plan around two sessions a week

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GuideDatingMarcus Vale23 Sept 20266 min

Ask in person, name the day, and accept the answer

The whole thing takes about twenty seconds. Almost everything that goes wrong happens because a man stretched it into three weeks.

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Dads6 min read

Talk to your son about girls in the truck, not at the table

The one big sit-down talk almost never works. Twenty small ones, side by side, over ten years, almost always do.

Poll

When did you last ask for a raise?

GuideBoys & GirlsWes Dunbar23 Sept 20266 min

Give Your Kids Their Saturdays Back, Mud and All

A practical plan for three unsupervised hours a week, what to hand them, what will go wrong, and how to keep your nerve on the porch.

GuideDatingMarcus Vale23 Sept 20266 min

What her father is actually trying to find out

Leave your phone in the car, answer the money question straight, and stay behind to help with the dishes. The rest is easier than you think.

Dude.com — 16 advisers who listen, talk and pray with you

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GuideBRO SeniorsSam Ortiz22 Sept 20266 min

How to mentor a younger man without giving him a speech

Most of what gets through to a twenty-eight-year-old arrives sideways, while you're both working on something else.

Quiz

Is your money actually in order?

Six questions. No email required, no sales pitch at the end.

GuideBoys & GirlsCal Brennan23 Sept 20266 min

Discipline Without Yelling Starts With Saying It Once

The volume isn't the problem. The problem is the fourth warning, and the kid who already knows you don't mean the first three.</the>

GuideCity BroJosh Halloran22 Sept 20265 min

How to keep your convictions in a city that doesn't share them

Decide your lines before somebody else picks them for you, say them once, and build the calendar that makes them possible.

Ask BRO

Build me a revision plan that I will actually stick to

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GuideDadsSam Ortiz22 Sept 20266 min

The conversation about her worth is a hundred conversations

It isn't one speech at fifteen. It's what you praise, what you tolerate, and what she watches you do on an ordinary Tuesday.

Shirts.com — Design it with AI. Wear it this week.

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GuideBoys & GirlsSam Ortiz23 Sept 20266 min

What Your Four, Eight and Twelve Year Old Can Actually Do

A chore list that matches real capability at each age, plus the part nobody tells you: it's slower, messier, and worth it anyway.

Poll

Where does your phone charge overnight?

GuideDatingMarcus Vale22 Sept 20266 min

Getting over somebody without pretending you're fine

Grief after a breakup isn't a character flaw. But how you carry it decides who you'll be when the next person shows up.

GuideDadsSam Ortiz22 Sept 20265 min

Most discipline only buys you ten minutes of quiet

Stopping a behavior and teaching a kid something are two different jobs, and only one of them still works when you're not in the room.

Delicious.com — Nine thousand recipes and a plan for tonight

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GuideBoys & GirlsRay Okonkwo23 Sept 20266 min

Three Jars and a Stack of Ones

How to run a kid's first allowance so the money actually teaches something, including the part where you let him waste it.

Quiz

Does your wardrobe actually fit you?

Five questions, honestly answered, and a plan for the next fortnight.

Dating6 min

Courtship isn't an old-fashioned word for slow

Young Men6 min

Write down what you believe, then go and test it

Ask BRO

What should I wear to this?

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GuideBoys & GirlsSam Ortiz23 Sept 20266 min

Fifty Books Worth Reading Aloud, and How to Finish Them

A nightly read-aloud habit survives on twelve minutes, a bookmark, and a list you don't have to think about. Steal mine.

CancerDefying.com — The research, protocols and reading in one place

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Dating6 min read

Have the hard conversations while they're still cheap

The questions that cost you an awkward evening at month three will cost you years if you leave them until month eighteen.

Poll

Where does your phone charge overnight?

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