Are we raising our children properly? Will our children have the tools to grow up as productive adults? Have we given them the best advice so that they can make the right choices in life?

These are the questions that often keep parents up all night; questions that cannot be answer the following morning. Only time will tell how they will develop.

And since we cannot see or predict our children’s future, the best thing for us to do is to raise them responsibly and give them our best advice. Hopefully, our children will follow our life lessons and lead them to productive and happy lives.

Now, the hard part is being able to determine which life lesson or advice to give. The following is a list of 5 lessons that I have given to my own children. I usually try to work them in during our normal conversation or when the opportunity presents itself.

And since my children have selective memories, I tend to mention these things as much as possible. Of course, I modify my message according to my audience’s age level.  

So to my own children, here’s Daddy’s 5 Best Life Lessons:

1. Listen To Your Heart: If you follow your heart, in the long run you would have made the right choice. Listening to your heart can be applied to your career, your studies, and your romantic life. If you listen to your heart, you will do your very best to make things work out. If things don’t work out because you listened to your heart, at least be comforted on the fact that for a moment you were truly happy and content.

 2. Help People: When everything is said and done, all that matter is how you have affected people’s lives. Every opportunity you get to help other people, do it. Most importantly, when you help, do it freely with no strings attached.

3. Read, Read, and Read: Knowledge is power. The only way you can constantly gain knowledge is through reading. Reading also improves the way you look and analyze your world. Through reading, you will be able to minimize your mistakes when it comes to making the tough decisions in life.

4. Take Calculated Risks: In order for you to succeed you must fail, therefore, you have to learn how to take risks. The risks that you need to take however have to be calculated risks. This means that before you take the plunge, you must have all the information you need. It is true that billionaires like Gates and Trump take big risks, but the risks they take are all informed risks. This is the reason for their success.

5. Be An Entrepreneur: It would be great if we live in world where financial stability is not important. Since we live in a world where money and success are synonymous, you must be able to make enough money to attain financial stability. And in order to do this, you must be an entrepreneur or have an entrepreneurial spirit. Strive so that you won’t have to live pay-check to pay-check. If you are financially stable, then you can focus more on living rather than working. While having a lot of money doesn’t guarantee happiness, it can significantly reduce stress.

I hope that these 5 things will help guide my children and yours to success and happiness. Please remember that these 5 things will only be effective if accompanied by responsible parenting.

No amount of great advice will ever replace the constant presence and attention of parent for a child.