The Daily Dad

In honor of Father's Day weekend, Ryan talks with Lieutenant General (Ret.) Mark Hertling about fatherhood, legacy, and the lessons we hope our children take with them. During a wartime deployment, Mark began writing a journal for his sons in case he did not return home. What started as a way to leave them guidance became a reflection on character, failure, leadership, and what it really means to be a father.

Lieutenant General (Ret.) Mark Hertling served 38 years in the U.S. Army, rising from tank platoon leader to commander of U.S. Army Europe and the Seventh Army. His career included combat tours in Desert Storm and Iraq, where he commanded the 1st Armored Division, prepared U.S. and allied forces for deployment, and helped support military transformation across Eastern Europe.

📚 Grab a copy of If I Don't Return: A Father's Wartime Journal by Lieutenant General (Ret.) Mark Hertling

👉 Follow Mark Hertling on Instagram | https://www.instagram.com/mark_hertling/

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Let them live their life. Let them make mistakes. That’s the whole point.

📚 Book Mentioned: The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion

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We want to make sure our kids have opportunities in life. But sometimes, we neglect one of the easiest ways to help them get ahead.

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You’ve got a long commute to school and then the office. They never sleep. There’s drama in the mom or dad group. It’s a lot. It’s also nothing!

📚 Books Mentioned: A Marriage at Sea: A True Story of Love, Obsession, and Shipwreck

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Plato, with total seriousness (and probably a bit of humor too), said that “of all the wild things, a boy is the most difficult to handle.” A lot of parents would agree to that.

🎙️ Check out Richard Reeves episode on the Daily Stoic Podcast | Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube

📚 Grab a copy of Of Boys and Men by Richard Reeves at The Painted Porch | https://www.thepaintedporch.com/

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