How to be a Great Dad

A family is a team that works together for a common goal to have a healthy, happy and a secured life (both financially and emotionally) for themselves and their children. 

While a mother is the pillar of strength and the foundation of a family, the father is the nurturer and protector.

We come from a defence background and this brilliant advert from SBI Life Insurance brought back fond memories from our childhood. Dad was in the Corps of Engineers in the Indian Army and our concept of a smart, handsome, respected and a man of principles came from him.

For my brother and I, Dad is our first hero and always will be. Even today in spite of being parents ourselves, my brother and I still look up to him for advice, suggestions and guidance.

The way our Dad teamed up with Mum to bring us up is commendable. He showed us how to care, love and share and how to be financially self reliant and independent.

The shoe-polishing scene from the SBI Life Insurance advert is such a fun and typical part of an army childhood. Dad taught us to polish our school shoes until it shone bright. My brother and I would often compete as to who’s shoes were more brightly polished and whether we could see our face on the polished shoes! 😀

Mum and Dad both have worked very hard to give us a happy childhood. Dad taught us how to save money; so both my brother and I had piggy banks and whenever we helped Mum in the kitchen or ran errands for her she would give us a few rupees that we could save up.

Later when my brother started going to college, he worked at various places during his summer vacations and earned his own pocket money, which further instilled a lot of financial discipline in him.

I remember when was in Grade IV Dad opened a savings account for both us at a nationalised bank and I was their youngest account holder. At that age I knew how to fill up a deposit slip and deposit my pocket money that I earned by running errands and helping Mum at home.

One fine day I remember I walked to the bank with a little bag full of coins that I had saved up over.

The teller at the bank clerk refused to accept the coins and I went back home disappointed. Dad was having his morning tea when he saw me back home with the coins. He quickly left his tea and took me back to the bank to meet the bank manager.

He explained to the manager that he is trying to teach me about finances and how to save money and if banks don’t encourage children and are not friendly towards them then how as adults can they teach the next generations to value money and save it!

The bank manager was such a nice gentleman, he apologised and patiently counted all the counts from my bag, which amounted to a princely sum of Rs. 127/-, and he took out Rs. 127 rupee notes from his wallet and asked me to go and deposit it at the counter while he kept the coins.

Ever since I’ve been the bank’s most popular and yes the youngest account holder as I could barely see the teller at the counter. I would stand up on my toes to give them my collected money and the teller would gladly accept it.

When he retired and started his own business and even when he worked as a senior executive director at a top computer company in India, if Dad was not traveling he would take us swimming, attend our parent teacher’s meetings, help us with our homework and school projects and above all, his dedicated attention to financial savings and financial security for all of us has given us a secured present and a good future. So is he a great Dad? No, he’s the BEST DAD! 🙂

If mothers can do the balancing act of managing the house, looking after their husbands and children, work and cook, then even fathers can surely balance the act by pitching in by being there for their family, ensuring that his wife and kids are respected, well looked after, leading a safe and secured life both emotionally and financially.

Life in the armed forces and even otherwise is uncertain and only a loving father realises the importance of a financial stability and security for his wife and children. So don’t wait for the right time – get a trusted brand such as the SBI Life Insurance for your family for a secured future so that you may enjoy your today with them.

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