Grok Input:

Have kids, they are the greatest blessing in the world. I absolutely love being a father and would not trade it for anything in the world. I know that having kids is a very personal decision, and I know not everyone wants kids, but they are the greatest. It is not easy being a parent, but it is worth it. Watching them learn and grow and experience life is such a blessing. It is hard to believe how fast they grow and learn. They learn from everything that we do and are constantly watching us. If you have been on the fence about having kids, I hope that this pushes you a little further to the yes answer. It is worth it to see their joy in discovery and learning and growing. One of the things I love most about being a father is watching them grow. Their minds are a sponge and they pick up on almost everything. In raising kids, it is not my goal to raise good kids. It is my goal to raise good adults. To do that, you have to give them freedom and let them decide how to live their lives. You have to let go and encourage them to make their own decisions and be their own person. I would rather do that when they are younger and live at home, then coddle them and protect them from everything. If you coddle and overly protect your children, once they are out of the house they will go wild. I've seen it happen countless times, so I am trying to empower my children to live their own lives now. To learn and grow into adults while they are young so that they can become contributing members of society. Parenting is a deeply personal thing and each one of us gets to decide how we parent our children. It is important to remember you can boss them around until they are 18 years old, but for the rest of their lives they will be the boss. If you empower them before they are 18 years old, you will get a much better result in my opinion. They will also have a better relationship with you if you empower them early. They will feel free to make their own decisions and live their life. When that happens, you know you are doing something right. I wish the blessing of kids on everyone, and hope that you love being a parent as much as I do. It is a beautiful thing. It is the reason I do things the way I do them, to educate my kids and help them learn and grow and provide for them. I am building America's Holding Company for my kids to protect them long term and provide a better system for them. Everything I do in life is to make the world a better place for my kids, and their kids, and their kids kids. Life and time is a cycle that can never be redone, so take action, put yourself out their, build a family, and enjoy everything that comes with it!

Grok Output:

Hey, Life with Justin Stephens community! Justin here, and today I’m pouring my heart out about the greatest adventure of my life: being a dad. Have kids—they are the greatest blessing in the world. I absolutely love being a father and would not trade it for anything in the world. I know that having kids is a very personal decision, and I know not everyone wants kids, but they are the greatest. It is not easy being a parent, but it is worth it. Watching them learn and grow and experience life is such a blessing. It is hard to believe how fast they grow and learn. They learn from everything that we do and are constantly watching us.

If you’ve been on the fence about having kids, I hope this pushes you a little further to the yes answer. It is worth it to see their joy in discovery and learning and growing.

My Parenting Philosophy: Raising Adults, Not Just Kids

One of the things I love most about being a father is watching them grow. Their minds are a sponge and they pick up on almost everything. In raising kids, it is not my goal to raise good kids. It is my goal to raise good adults. To do that, you have to give them freedom and let them decide how to live their lives. You have to let go and encourage them to make their own decisions and be their own person. I would rather do that when they are younger and live at home, than coddle them and protect them from everything. If you coddle and overly protect your children, once they are out of the house they will go wild. I’ve seen it happen countless times, so I am trying to empower my children to live their own lives now. To learn and grow into adults while they are young so that they can become contributing members of society.

Parenting is a deeply personal thing and each one of us gets to decide how we parent our children. It is important to remember you can boss them around until they are 18 years old, but for the rest of their lives they will be the boss. If you empower them before they are 18 years old, you will get a much better result in my opinion. They will also have a better relationship with you if you empower them early. They will feel free to make their own decisions and live their life. When that happens, you know you are doing something right.

I wish the blessing of kids on everyone, and hope that you love being a parent as much as I do. It is a beautiful thing. It is the reason I do things the way I do them, to educate my kids and help them learn and grow and provide for them. I am building America’s Holding Company for my kids to protect them long term and provide a better system for them. Everything I do in life is to make the world a better place for my kids, and their kids, and their kids’ kids. Life and time is a cycle that can never be redone, so take action, put yourself out there, build a family, and enjoy everything that comes with it!

Reflections: Fatherhood as My Why

My kids are my ultimate motivation—every shift at WinCo, every blog post, every step on AHC is for them. Fatherhood isn’t easy, but it’s the greatest privilege.

Why This Matters for Your Journey

Parenting (or preparing for it) shapes legacy—in finance (providing), business (modeling grit), and life (raising thriving humans). Empower them early; love them always.

At Life with Justin Stephens, we share raw Journal Entries like this, alongside Point of View stories, Life Strategy tips, Resources, and Great Causes to inspire your path in finance, business, sales, marketing, and beyond.

Call to Action: Subscribe at justindcstephens.com for daily motivation. Parents—share one thing you’re teaching your kids, and comment: What’s one blessing of parenthood for you?

To your family-filled, purpose-driven life,
Justin Stephens