DadAwesome

FEATURED
Join DADAWESOME DAY - Monday June 1st, 2026 - text "book" to (651) 370-8618 to learn more and receive updates on Monday, June 1st.
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SUMMARY
Most men are getting lived by their lives instead of actually living them. In this conversation, Alan Briggs unpacks how a life of constant escape leaves us empty at the end of the day, and what it looks like to design something we can actually engage with instead. From Yes Days with your kids to preparing for the car ride home the way you'd prepare for a business meeting, Alan brings practical insight that will reshape how you show up as a dad this week.
TAKEAWAYS
---The best dads aren't the ones with the most time. They're the ones who prepare for the small moments with the same intentionality they bring to work.
---A coming of age year for your son doesn't require waking up at 4 a.m. It just requires showing up consistently and inviting other trusted men to speak life into him.
---Celebrate who your kids actually are instead of trying to make them love what you love. Curiosity is the doorway to connection.
---We were built for both meaningful work and real rest. Without a healthy theology of both, we swing between burnout and apathy.
---The question that changes everything: What is the good life for you and your family three years from now?
GUEST
Alan Briggs is a coach, author, and adventurer based in Colorado Springs. He runs two and a half companies, including a coworking space, and spends his days helping leaders find a lighter, more sustainable way to live and work. He's the author of multiple books, including his latest resource on anti-burnout, and the host of his own podcast for leaders. Alan and his wife are raising four kids ranging from 12 to 23, including two adopted children. He loves the mountains, disc golf with his son, and learning to cheer for his kids in the worlds they love most.
QUOTES
"Most men are getting lived by their lives. They are not living their lives. They are letting choices make them. They are not making intentional choices."
"I prepare for business meetings. Do I prepare that well for a date with my wife, a date with my daughter, a car ride? Almost always, no."
"You don't have to be up at 4 a.m. with your kid. You don't have to do it every day. But do something that affirms you've got what it takes."
"Celebrate exactly who they are and exactly what they love doing, instead of trying to make them love the things that you love doing."
"We are not the sum of what we carry. Our identity and who we are loved by is so much more important than what we are as dads."
LINKS
Join the DadAwesome Prayer Team: Text "pray" to (651) 370-8618

Send a Voice Message to DadAwesome

Apply to join the next DadAwesome Accelerator Cohort

Subscribe to DadAwesome Messages: Text the word "Dad" to (651) 370-8618

Send a Voice Message to DadAwesome

7-Day Video Series: dadawesome.org/book

DadAwesome Podcast: dadawesome.org/podcast

Free Chapter + Intro Video Series: dadawesome.org/book

Apply to join the next DadAwesome Accelerator Cohort: Email [email protected]

Subscribe to DadAwesome Messages: Text "Dad" to (651) 370-8618

Dad Awesome book: dadawesome.org/book

Alan Briggs - H2LEADERSHIP

Alan's BOOKS

🎙️ Brandon Lake's dad on the DadAwesome podcast.
Mac Lake (a.k.a. "Pops") joins us for a powerful conversation on speaking life, leading at home, and shaping your kids into who God already sees them to be.
✅ The biblical definition of leader — disciple, servant, apostle (and why "I'm not much of a leader" is insecurity, not humility)
✅ How a posture of unhurried presence changes everything (Pops TV, dinosaur eggs, and football for 60 minutes if they want 60)
✅ Why discipline is discipleship — and how to stop disciplining out of a wounded ego
 
SUMMARY
The words you speak to your kids today become the voice inside their head for the rest of their lives — for better or worse. In this episode, Mac Lake (yes, that Mac — Brandon Lake's dad) shares the leadership wisdom he's spent a lifetime giving away: how to speak life over your kids, why "I'm not much of a leader" is insecurity in disguise, and how a biblical definition of leader — disciple, servant, apostle — changes how you show up at home. Plus Pops TV, dinosaur eggs, and why discipline is discipleship.
 
TAKEAWAYS
Leadership in your home requires both spirit and skill. David shepherded with integrity of heart and skillful hands — don't lean only on business-style competence, and don't go passive at home either.
Your words become your child's inner voice — so speak life. Get on your knee, look them in the eye, tell them you're proud of them and why. Be their biggest cheerleader, not their biggest critic.
Build a faith legacy by telling the works of God in your family. Like Asaph in Psalm 78, your kids should know specific stories of how God has shown up for your family, not just for Israel.
Unhurried presence is the gift most dads underestimate. Put the phone away, leave the adult conversation, throw the football for 60 minutes if they want 60 minutes — they need you fully there, not just nearby.
Discipline is discipleship — not ego protection. When kids misbehave, it's not a verdict on your identity. Shape them into the image of Christ instead of reacting from your wounded ego.
 
GUEST
Mac Lake is a pastor, leadership coach, and the founder of The Multiplication Center, where he trains church leaders to identify and develop multiplying leaders. He's the author of The Multiplication Effect and has spent decades coaching pastors and executives in leadership pipeline development. He and his wife Cindy ("CeCe") have three grown kids — including worship artist Brandon Lake — and six grandkids who know him as "Pops." They live in South Carolina.
LINKS
Join the DadAwesome Prayer Team: Text "pray" to (651) 370-8618

Send a Voice Message to DadAwesome

Apply to join the next DadAwesome Accelerator Cohort

Subscribe to DadAwesome Messages: Text the word "Dad" to (651) 370-8618

Send a Voice Message to DadAwesome

7-Day Video Series: dadawesome.org/book

DadAwesome Podcast: dadawesome.org/podcast

Free Chapter + Intro Video Series: dadawesome.org/book

Apply to join the next DadAwesome Accelerator Cohort: Email [email protected]

Subscribe to DadAwesome Messages: Text "Dad" to (651) 370-8618

Dad Awesome book: dadawesome.org/book

The Multiplication Effect by Mac Lake

Wild at Heart by John Eldredge (referenced)

Brandon Lake — music and ministry

FROM THE VAULT with Bob Goff:
✅ Why hovering over your family is one of the most important things you can do as a dad
✅ How to leave behind treasures your kids will discover long after you are gone
✅ The courage it takes to quit something that no longer fits and start fresh
✅ What Bob learned from his friends at San Quentin about feeding the people around you
SUMMARY
There are around 8 billion people alive right now, and there have been 107 billion who came before us. That context changes everything about how you spend today with your kids. In this From the Vault conversation, Bob Goff returns to talk about hovering over your family the way God hovered over the earth, leaving behind treasures your kids will discover for years to come, and finding the courage to make bold moves when something in your life needs to change. Bob shares why being fully present matters more than providing, how to live a "no capes" kind of life, and why the small moments will be the bookmarks your kids carry forever.
TAKEAWAYS
The kind of grandfather you want to be will be a byproduct of the kind of dad you are right now.
Hovering over each person in your family means asking what they uniquely need that only you could provide.
Living a "no capes" life means doing meaningful things without making a big deal about them.
Your family needs you fully present far more than they need what you provide.
When something in your life stops fitting, having the courage to quit and start fresh can change everything.
GUEST
Bob Goff is the bestselling author of Love Does, Everybody Always, Dream Big, and Undistracted, along with several children's books co-written with his daughter Lindsey. He is the founder of Love Does, a nonprofit that operates schools and safe houses for children in conflict zones around the world. Bob and his wife, Sweet Maria, live in San Diego and spend much of their time at The Oaks, where they host gatherings for dreamers and world changers. They have three grown children and several grandchildren.
 
Quotes
"The kind of grandfather you want to be will be a byproduct of the kind of dad that you are." — Bob Goff
"Hover over each person in your family. What does kid number one need that I could only uniquely provide them?" — Bob Goff
"What your family really needs you to provide is you, like, fully present." — Bob Goff
"Sometimes the familiar will get in the way of what's actually possible." — Bob Goff
"Everybody doesn't get a slice, but everybody's fed." — Bob Goff
Links
Join the DadAwesome Prayer Team: Text "pray" to (651) 370-8618

Send a Voice Message to DadAwesome

Apply to join the next DadAwesome Accelerator Cohort

Subscribe to DadAwesome Messages: Text the word "Dad" to (651) 370-8618

Send a Voice Message to DadAwesome

7-Day Video Series: dadawesome.org/book

DadAwesome Podcast: dadawesome.org/podcast

Free Chapter + Intro Video Series: dadawesome.org/book

Apply to join the next DadAwesome Accelerator Cohort: Email [email protected]

Subscribe to DadAwesome Messages: Text "Dad" to (651) 370-8618

Dad Awesome book: dadawesome.org/book

https://www.bobgoff.com/

Bob's BOOKS

SUMMARY
I brought a real story to Dr. Michelle this week. A small mistake on my part, a hurt little girl, a defensive dad at bedtime, and my wife catching my eye across the room. What unfolded was a live coaching moment I needed more than I knew. Dr. Michelle gently walked me back through what I missed, what was actually under the anger, and how to do the repair that actually reaches a daughter's heart. If you have ever blown it with your kids and tried to talk your way out of it instead of leaning in, this conversation is for you.
Takeaways
Anger is usually the front door. The real emotion sitting behind it is almost always sadness, fear, or confusion, and your kids feel that gap before you do.
When your child tells the story of how you hurt them, the most powerful thing you can say is three words. Tell me more. Then stay there longer than feels comfortable.
Defensiveness bombs the bridge to your kids' hearts and to their picture of God as Father. Compassion builds it.
Luke 15 verse 20 gives a five step pattern any dad can follow. He saw, he was filled with compassion, he ran, he threw his arms around, he kissed.
A consistent monthly daddy daughter date and a note in your own handwriting create anchors of memory your kids will carry into adulthood.
Guest
Dr. Michelle Watson Canfield is a licensed counselor, speaker, and the host of The Dad Whisperer podcast. She founded The Abba Project, a nine month group for dads of daughters between thirteen and thirty, and has spent the last fifteen plus years coaching fathers in the work of pursuing their daughters' hearts. She is the author of Dad, Here's What I Really Need from You and Let's Talk, and her writing on fatherhood has reached dads in all fifty states and around the world.
Quotes 
"You guys are wired with tender hearts. Tough and tender is a powerful combination as a man." Dr. Michelle Watson Canfield
"Under mad is usually sad or scared or confused. Lead with your heart more than your head." Dr. Michelle Watson Canfield
"Tell me more. That's how she gets it out, and then it's not there between you anymore." Dr. Michelle Watson Canfield
"Defensiveness bombs the bridge. Compassion builds it. That's the work of fathering a daughter's heart." Dr. Michelle Watson Canfield
"Anchors of memory in a place. Find one or two spots that become yours together with your daughter." Dr. Michelle Watson Canfield

You probably think you're closer to your daughter than she'd say you are. The research keeps proving it. Dr. Michelle Watson Canfield is back with the question every dad of daughters should ask this week:
✅ The zero to ten question that closes the closeness gap
✅ Why one word of affirmation revives what looked dead
✅ A five senses experiment to pursue her on purpose
✅ Jeff opening up about missing it with his four year old the night before
 
MOM AWESOME CHALLENGE >
Text MOM to (651) 370-8618 // or click here
 
SUMMARY
Most dads think they're closer to their daughters than they actually are. Dr. Michelle Watson Canfield has spent 30 years sitting with dads and daughters in the gap between, and she came on DadAwesome to say it plain: your words water her dry soul, your anger can wipe out nine good days, and pursuit is the muscle every dad has to keep building. This is part one of a two part conversation, and Jeff brings a real story from the night before about missing it with his four year old.
 
TAKEAWAYS
Pursuit is not a season. It does not end at the wedding or the hospital room. Your daughter and your wife need to be pursued today.
Ask your daughter the zero to ten question. Where would you rank our closeness, is that the number you want, and what can I do to be a better dad to you.
Your words land like water on dry soil. One sentence of affirmation can revive what looked dead four days ago.
Your anger will do more to shut her down than almost anything else. Repair every rupture.
Run the five senses experiment. Notice what you see in her, listen one minute longer than yesterday, tie smell to memory, speak one word of life, and give safe physical touch on purpose.
GUEST
Dr. Michelle Watson Canfield is a licensed counselor, speaker, and the host of The Dad Whisperer Podcast. She founded The Abba Project in 2010, a group coaching experience for dads of daughters, and has written two books for fathers: Dad, Here's What I Really Need from You and Let's Talk. 
QUOTES
"Your words are like water to her dry soul. She will spring forth with beauty and color and life with your words."
"You can do nine things right and one anger response can wipe it out. You've got to make repair for the rupture."
"Every one of us as women have a God given place in us that wants to be seen, adored, championed, celebrated."
"Ask your daughter on a scale of zero to ten, where would you rank us? What can I do better?"
"What you see, she doesn't see. By pursuing and seeing and knowing us, we internalize it."
Links:
Text MOM to (651) 370-8618 // or click here

Join the DadAwesome Prayer Team: Text "pray" to (651) 370-8618

dadawesome.org/book

Send a Voice Message to DadAwesome

Apply to join the next DadAwesome Accelerator Cohort

Subscribe to DadAwesome Messages: Text the word "Dad" to (651) 370-8618

Send a Voice Message to DadAwesome

7-Day Video Series: dadawesome.org/book

DadAwesome Podcast: dadawesome.org/podcast

Free Chapter + Intro Video Series: dadawesome.org/book

Apply to join the next DadAwesome Accelerator Cohort: Email [email protected]

Subscribe to DadAwesome Messages: Text "Dad" to (651) 370-8618

Dad Awesome book: dadawesome.org/book

Dr. Michelle Watson Canfield: drmichellewatson.com

Dad, Here's What I Really Need from You by Dr. Michelle Watson

Let's Talk by Dr. Michelle Watson

The Dad Whisperer Podcast

The Abba Project

Drop Your Anger video