Invisible Things Dads Can Do That Make a Big Difference

Fatherhood comes in many forms: two-parent households, shared custody, single dads, blended families. No matter how often you see your kids or how much time you spend together, the things you do that aren’t obvious — the planning, organizing and mental juggling — can be just as impactful as the movie tickets or camping trips.

No one in their right mind would argue that dads carry the majority of emotional labour in parenting. Not even Leafs fans, or people who think Oasis will get back together and last more than two shows this time. But what dads do contribute matters — and most of us probably have more capacity to help than we realize.

Here are three practical ways dads can reduce the emotional load at home while teaching their kids valuable life skills:

Be organized — and teach organization.

If your child is in elementary school, they can probably put away their own laundry. Labelling drawers with masking tape and a marker helps. For older kids, introduce a family calendar — digital or on the fridge — and have them add school events, hot-lunch days and practices themselves. As I often tell my kids, “you aren’t born knowing things.” Organization is a learned skill, built through repetition.

Teach kids how to stay socially connected.

When my kids were younger, they made handwritten thank-you cards for birthday gifts and we relied on teachers to help slip invitations into backpacks. As they get older, staying in touch might mean messaging friends from teams or exchanging phone numbers. Helping kids learn how to follow up, make plans and maintain friendships isn’t just social development — adults call this networking.

Stay on top of the details.

Free tools like Google Calendar, reminders and spreadsheets are powerful. I track everything: school spirit days, library due dates, dog medication, even vehicle maintenance. Building systems like these reduces stress, models responsibility and lightens the load on your partner or co-parent.

Gone are the days of the Archie Bunker-style dad who works, comes home, expects dinner and checks out. Modern dads can — and should — do more. Often, it’s the invisible things that make the biggest difference.

 

Jeremy McCall is a married father of 3, a social services case manager, and known as “The Dadfather”, being the founder and Past President of Dad Club London.