6 Things I’ve Learned in 6 Months as a First-Time Dad

Our little lady is six months old today.

Here’s six things I’ve learned in six months of being a first-time parent.

1. Sleep is really important

I thought I’d experienced lack of sleep before — but actual sleep deprivation is different. It impacts everything.

If you’re trying to do anything in your business, your health, fitness, whatever — prioritise sleep.
Get some good sleep and you’ll be setting yourself up well for success.

Without sleep, we are nothing as humans.

2. Plans need to be flexible

You need options. You need backup plans.

You might think, “Okay, if I nap now, eat now, walk the dog now — then I can do all these other things today.”

Nah.

That all goes out the window if your kid won’t sleep, isn’t feeling well, or is just having a day.
Totally normal baby stuff — so you can’t be rigid with routines.

Adapt, adjust, keep things moving.

3. Remember you’re part of a team

This has been a learning curve for my wife and I (and our dog Gibson, who’s still figuring things out too).

Bringing a new little human into the mix changes everything.
Different needs, different rhythms. You can’t prepare for it fully — everyone says “you’re never ready” and yep, they were right.

If an adult moved in with you, it would change the dynamic a little bit. But a tiny, unpredictable, non-verbal person?
Whole different vibe.

So yeah, communication matters. Cut each other a bit of slack.
We all handle things differently. I know I’ve reacted in ways I didn’t expect to (let’s just leave it at that).

Look after your team.

4. Look after yourself

You can’t help anyone if you’re not okay.

If you need time to hit the gym, go for a walk, have a long hot bath — take it.
It’s hard at the start because everything is so full-on, but even 20 minutes every other day makes a difference.

Take what you can, when you can.

5. Zoom out

There’s a big picture here.

When you’ve got a child, you very much live in the now.
There are pros and cons to that, but you’ve also got to zoom out and think about where you want to go in your life — and the steps you need to take to get there.

There’ll be some challenging times, especially at the beginning. Those will pass.

But the decisions you make along the way — how you react, how you look after them, what you feed them — all of that stuff does matter, and has an impact down the line.
Same goes for you and the other people on your team.

Are you looking after yourselves?
Are you thinking about what you want to be doing or achieving in the next six months, a year, five years, ten years?

Don’t lose sight of your bigger picture.
It’s really easy to get swept up in the chaos of a new little addition.

6. Celebrate the wins

Bit of a business-y phrase, I know, but it fits.

Make space to take in the good stuff.
Sometimes you’ll feel overwhelmed just trying to exist.

But then, like today, we woke up and she was just lying there smiling at us, laughing her little head off.

That moment made my day.

There’s been a lot of progress in six months. It’s easy to forget the good bits in the middle of five straight nights of no sleep (and everyone screaming… not just the baby).

But then she screams with laughter or tries a new food for the first time. Those are the moments.

Let them sink in.

That’s my six things in six months. I’m sure plenty of other parents out there have similar takeaways - or very different ones - but I wanted to share this while it’s all fresh.

If you’ve got any tips or lessons from the early days, feel free to pass them along.

We’re learning as we go.