HOW to MAN-UP to YOUR WIFE

I love good advice when I hear it.

Good advice needs to be shared, it needs to spread its wings. Like this one from my dad: Don’t burn any bridges, you will always meet twice in your life! Or this one from my mom: Always put on nice undies when you go out (???) Well, what does this have to do with anything? Let me give her the benefit of the doubt – and honestly, to this day I follow her advice (mom does know best).   And yesterday I heard some really cool nuggets from my own husband: “One way or the other, we men are screwed!”

You see, I put him on the spot for an impromptu interview for Motherpreneur TV. This man has been through much, living with me. He endures, experiences and supports  his free spirited life companion throughout her various life phases. This woman(me) made him climb Mt. Kilimanjaro. She turned his whole life upside down when she started her coffee shop.

She neglected him and their boys when she wrote (and now re-wrote ) her book only to drive him crazy during her recent pre-menopausal midlife confusion! Every man should listen up when Dominic speaks up.  His tips and advice are tried and tested. They stood the test of time, we know each other for 23 years, we are married for 16 of them.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          Dominic follows the Keep it simple– rule! In other words, there is only one wife for him! As far as I know he doesn’t have any secret love affairs (other than the one with his car) or alimony to pay. As I said, he keeps his life simple! Over the years he has experienced first hand what it means when a woman follows the beat of her own drum. He realized you only have choices: You can stay or you can run! When I decided to start my own coffee shop he cried, waved his life as he knew it good-bye and Manned -Up to the challenge supporting me. Here are his three reasons why you should do the same when your wife is ready to turn your life upside down.

1). It makes you a better father.

 As soon as your wife is off to make her own dream come true you are expected to get more involved in raising the children (or get the cute Swedish Au-pair?). Well, the first thing you need to do is adjust your business schedule to accommodate  the schedule of your young ones. This may take some time and in the process of doing so you might forget to pick up one of the kids from their activities. Not to worry, this happens to the best of dads … or so I heard.

I am not saying it was easy for my man to make the jump from full time business man to part time stay-at-home-dad!  It took time for all of us to get used to our new routines- however, we made it happen and the children loved having their father around more often (he is definitely more fun than I am). When your kiddies know you are in charge they will turn to you with their concerns, questions, demands, asking you for cookies, band aids and play dates. You will be the one they are going to share their stories with. In other words, your bond with your sweet loved ones becomes stronger and bigger!

2). You will become a better cook!

Children need to eat! If the woman of the House is gone you need to step up and create something nutritious and/or delicious. It can be made from scratch, from the freezer or something simple like heating up left overs. One way or the other, you need to feed your little ones with something. If  your wife forgot to fill the freezer and pantry you need to discover your inner Jamie Oliver- and believe me, there is one in all of you! I saw it happening in front of my eyes, over and over again! If you don’t want your family to go to bed hungry you will and can step up to create the most creative meals with just tuna, pineapples, garlic prawns and crackers!

3). You are going to live longer!    

Oh yes, never under  estimate the power of  freshly cooked delicious, nutritious meals. If consumed on a regular basis they can add years to your life. Here is another reason why you may live longer: As soon as your wife knows she doesn’t  need to worry about the children she can go full speed ahead with creating and living her big, fat dream! And this dear husbands, is the best feeling in the world (perhaps not the best, but one of the better ones). From experiences speaking I know, going after your dreams makes you a happier wife! Being a happy woman/wife makes for a happy life for the rest of the family! Once again I need to stress,  this wasn’t an easy undertaking!

Dominic is a very clever man. He knows, a woman who really wants something is unstoppable. Time again and again he witnessed his friends not Manning-Up and their wives left them.  Let me say it again, Dominic is a clever man! He supports me and is part of the grand adventure. And all because he knows: A Happy Wife makes for a Happy Life!

Find out more about Dominic over here. His Sales Success Academy is a fantastic source for anybody wanting to become better in sales; and his book “The “Making” is a delightful read about his journey to Australia where he found and mastered the basics of sales as a B2B sales man!

What are your experiences with supporting your lovely wife? How did it turn your life upside down? Have you become a better cook? Please leave us the comments below! I’m sure Dominic will be happy to hear from you. And so am I!