--- title: Are You The Best Kind Of Parent? description: Christopher A. Brown discusses what makes the best kind of parent in his newest post... image: https://www.fatherhood.org/hubfs/are_you_the_best_kind_of_parent-1.jpg --- [Skip to main content](https://www.fatherhood.org/championing-fatherhood/best-kind-of-parent#main) - [![NFI mark](https://www.fatherhood.org/hubfs/NFI-Assets/images/NFI%20mark.svg)FATHERHOOD.ORG](https://www.fatherhood.org/) - [STORE.FATHERHOOD.ORG](https://store.fatherhood.org/) [![NFI_logo_blue_left (1) 1](https://www.fatherhood.org/hs-fs/hubfs/NFI-Assets/images/NFI_logo_blue_left%20(1)%201.png?width=149&height=82&name=NFI_logo_blue_left%20(1)%201.png) ![NFI_logo_blue_left (1) 1](https://www.fatherhood.org/hs-fs/hubfs/NFI-Assets/images/NFI_logo_blue_left%20(1)%201.png?width=119&height=65&name=NFI_logo_blue_left%20(1)%201.png) ![NFI_logo_blue_left (1) 1](https://www.fatherhood.org/hs-fs/hubfs/NFI-Assets/images/NFI_logo_blue_left%20(1)%201.png?width=119&height=66&name=NFI_logo_blue_left%20(1)%201.png) ![NFI_logo_blue_left (1) 1](https://www.fatherhood.org/hs-fs/hubfs/NFI-Assets/images/NFI_logo_blue_left%20(1)%201.png?width=89&height=49&name=NFI_logo_blue_left%20(1)%201.png) ](https://www.fatherhood.org) - [How To Build Strong Families](https://www.fatherhood.org/build-strong-families) - [Why Father Inclusion Matters](https://www.fatherhood.org/why-father-inclusion-matters) - Show submenu for Get Involved Get Involved - [Fatherhood Programs](https://www.fatherhood.org/solutions/programs-and-resources) - [Train Your Staff](https://www.fatherhood.org/solutions/staff-training) - [State, County, and City Agency Services](https://www.fatherhood.org/solutions/collaborative-services) Open main navigation Close main navigation - Show submenu for Get Informed Get Informed - [How To Build Strong Families](https://www.fatherhood.org/build-strong-families) - [Why Father Inclusion Matters](https://www.fatherhood.org/why-father-inclusion-matters) - [Father Stats & Infographics](https://www.fatherhood.org/father-absence-statistic) - Show submenu for Get Involved Get Involved - [Fatherhood Programs](https://www.fatherhood.org/solutions/programs-and-resources) - [Train Your Staff](https://www.fatherhood.org/solutions/staff-training) - [State, County, and City Agency Services](https://www.fatherhood.org/solutions/collaborative-services) - Show submenu for Get Started Get Started - [Find Your Stage of Father Inclusion](https://www.fatherhood.org/father-inclusion) - [How Father Friendly Is Your Organization?](https://www.fatherhood.org/father-friendly) - [Get In Touch](https://www.fatherhood.org/get-started) [Store](https://store.fatherhood.org/?hsLang=en) [Get In Touch](https://www.fatherhood.org/get-started) [Store](https://store.fatherhood.org/?hsLang=en) Show submenu for Get Started Get Started - [Fatherhood Data & Statistics](https://www.fatherhood.org/father-absence-statistic) - [How Father Friendly is Your Organization?](https://www.fatherhood.org/father-friendly) - [Other Free Resources](https://www.fatherhood.org/nfi-free-resources) - [Talk With us to Get Started](https://www.fatherhood.org/get-started) National Fatherhood Initiative Blog / [Latest Articles](https://www.fatherhood.org/championing-fatherhood) [General Fatherhood Research & Studies](https://www.fatherhood.org/championing-fatherhood/topic/general-fatherhood-research-studies) # Are You The Best Kind Of Parent? 1 min read ![Christopher A. Brown](https://www.fatherhood.org/hs-fs/hubfs/Images/chris_circle_icon.png?width=100&height=100&name=chris_circle_icon.png) [** Christopher A. Brown ** ](https://www.fatherhood.org/championing-fatherhood/author/christopher-a-brown) Chris serves as the President of National Fatherhood Initiative® (NFI), where he is responsible for overseeing the development and implementation of NFI's strategic plan and business model, as well as its operations and fundraising efforts. This post originally appeared on [The Huffington Post](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/christopher-a-brown/are-you-the-best-kind-of-_b_11303116.html). If you’re a parent and self-reflect at all, you’ve undoubtedly wondered whether you’re a good parent. Perhaps you’ve wondered whether you’re the best kind of parent. As someone who has spent his career helping parents, especially dads, to be the best parents they can possibly be, I can tell you there’s no shortage of opinions on what makes the best kind of parent. ![are_you_the_best_kind_of_parent-1.jpg](https://www.fatherhood.org/hs-fs/hubfs/are_you_the_best_kind_of_parent-1.jpg?width=452&height=304&name=are_you_the_best_kind_of_parent-1.jpg) To help parents answer that question, I look for two things: 1. Research that provides evidence on what makes for the best parent. 2. Simple ways to communicate the evidence. **What I find in short supply isn’t evidence so much as simple ways to communicate it.** That’s why I admire the ways in which best-selling author Daniel Pink communicates evidence related to all kinds of important topics, such as on what motivates humans and that we’re constantly involved in selling something. His talent is perusing research on a topic, distilling what the body (bulk) of the research says and sharing what the research says in ways that are easy to understand. Recently, he’s started to communicate via “Pinkcasts” — short videos he records in his office and that he puts online. In one of his recent Pinkcasts, he illustrates with a clipboard and a 2x2 matrix what makes for the best parent. Rather than tell you what he says, click [here](http://www.danpink.com/pinkcast/pinkcast-1-4-this-chart-will-make-you-rethink-parenting-and-leading/?utm_source=Dan+Pink%27s+Newsletter&utm_campaign=29b66d36fb-) to watch the 2-minute Pinkcast. Then read the rest of this post. Isn’t that a simple way to answer whether you’re the best parent — a wise parent? Sure. You have to unpack what it means to be supportive and demanding, the activities or actions associated with each characteristic. (To start unpacking them, I recommend reading the [book](http://amzn.to/2bbu5Hb) he mentions.) But this simple way of answering the question provides a starting point for self-reflection. Knowing where to start is vital to any exercise in being the best parent you can be. This post originally appeared on [The Huffington Post](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/christopher-a-brown/are-you-the-best-kind-of-_b_11303116.html). Date Published: 08/16/2016 Last Updated: 03/27/2026 ## Learn How to Build a Fatherhood Program That Works Download this free guide for a proven 7-step roadmap—from making the case and securing funding for your program, to launching and measuring real results! 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