I don't comment a lot on these types of posts, but I am going to make an exception on this one. I have made more mistakes as a parent than I care to admit. Some things, I got right. Here is my approach to parenting:

There are no second chances when it comes to discipline. It's like seeing how long you can run your truck without oil, then after it blows up, trying to add oil to "fix" it. If you wait until it blows up, it may be "un-fixable". Discipline isn't always a whipping, but it is always a training moment. Every child is different and as a parent you have to determine what is the most effective way to train your child.

It is the parent's job to teach their children to have respect for authority, respect for others, and respect for themselves, the value of hard work, the value of a dollar, and the value of human life. These lessons can only be taught by spending time with your children. It's your job to rear your own children. If you try and leave that job to others, you will fail as a parent. Spend as much time as you can with your children because they will be grown before you know it. You have a finite number of opportunities. Make the most of them. Your job as a parent is to raise a child that can make it on their own and be a productive member of society. You are the biggest influence on how your kids turn out. You will shape their character and morals. Right or wrong, you will be judged a parent by the actions of your children.

The lessons you teach your children, whether good or bad, begin before they can walk. Don't wait or put if off until your kids are un-teachable. Each day you wait only makes it more difficult until it becomes a nearly impossible task. Children will test their boundaries until they find them. It's up to you to set those boundaries and enforce them. The lessons you teach are re-enforced every day by how you live your own life as a parent. They WILL learn by watching you. My son is more like me than I care to admit. He drives like I drive, he thinks like I think, and he acts like I act. Those lessons need to be consistent between both parents. I think the biggest obstacles to discipline are a lack of agreement between parents and unstable home environments (mostly due to divorce).

My children are 28 and 22. I could not be more proud of them. Both are extremely responsible and that didn't happen by accident or overnight. As noted, I am far from a perfect parent, but I tried to be consistent. I did not bluff. I did not count. I did not yell. I meant what I said. I whipped my kids when they needed it (never out of anger) and it was mostly when they were very young (before age 7, after that, they didn't need many whippings). My wife whipped the kids when they needed it. Daily, I hugged my kids and told them that I loved them. I have always told them how proud I was of them.

I heard an old adage once and I think it is fairly accurate. Raising a child is like holding a wet bar of soap. If you hold it too loosely, it will fall from your hand. If you hold it too tightly, it will shoot from your hand. It takes just the right amount of pressure to hold it firmly.