Robbie Williams was on The Graham Norton Show when he described the moment he knew he was a dad. The singer, who was “down the business end” while his wife was giving birth, recalled, “It was like watching my favourite pub … burn down.”
From that moment on, life changed forever. On that merry note, we asked three new dads what effect fatherhood has had on their lives. Here’s what they had to say between sleepless nights, diaper changes and morning cuddles.
CHRISTOPHER OWEN
Co-founder of studio Thirty30 Creative, with his wife, Victoria Tang-Owen
“Fatherhood is wonderful; nothing is more rewarding than loving and being loved unconditionally. Rocco is showing plenty of his mother’s sweet nature, with a dash of his father’s impatience. His first word was ‘ball’ and he’s showing a real affinity for football, basketball and bouncing anything that might be breakable on the floor!”
BRADLEY GARLAND
Head of Asia at The Omerta Group
“What’s it like being a father all over again? Wonderful and tiring at the same time. The one thing I hope my children inherit from us is kindness. And the one thing I hope they don’t inherit is our impatience! My daughter’s first word was ‘Mum’ but her favourite word at the moment is ‘Daddy’. I wonder what my son’s first words are going to be. The shoot we did as a family went well; both Maya and Ryan have inherited [my wife Ana R’s] modelling skills. At home I’m in charge, of course, and I have my wife’s permission to say so.”
DAVID CHANG
Venture capitalist and co-founder of Hong Kong’s first Crossfit gym
“Like all new dads, my experience of fatherhood has been surreal. It’s been a complete paradigm shift in my mentality towards life in general. Having a kid makes you question the purpose you have on the planet – psychologically you view things very differently. At the end of the day, you start living your life for your child, instead of yourself.
I hope he has the ability to change and adapt to the times, whether it be personally or professionally. One trait I hope he doesn’t get from me is my ADD; sometimes, I open too many books and don’t finish all of them. I want him to be more focused. Do one thing and do it well – something I need to do myself.
Since my son’s birth, the biggest thing I learned is to be disciplined in time management, to balance both life and work. My son is three months old now – the hopes I have for him are simple: I just want him to live a healthy and productive life. In the future, I hope he brings some kind of value to humanity, that he has a purpose. But at this juncture just a good foundation, which is good health.”
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