DA459 | The Distracted Dad Audit, Pausing the Hustle, and Finding the Keys to Your Kids' Hearts (Jeff Zaugg)

A wrong shuttle bus, a kiosk that kept saying "you're too late," a lost wallet, and car keys that slid two rows up the airplane aisle. In this solo episode, Jeff Zaugg walks through one stressful Monday morning at the DFW airport with his wife and four daughters and pulls out five fresh dad discoveries from the chaos. You'll hear why distraction puts your family on the wrong bus, why getting up and asking for help beats solving it from your seat, and how a Holy Spirit nudge to check his pocket saved the whole trip home. Key Takeaways The distracted dad audit: Make a list of the things, even the responsible ones, that are pulling your attention away from presence with your kids. A distracted dad ends up on the wrong bus. Get out of your seat: Stop trying to solve it alone from the back of the bus. Get up sooner and ask someone who's been there before: a friend, a pastor, a counselor, a book, a podcast. Why not try? When the screen says "you're too late," try anyway. Our kids benefit from a dad who tries again after a daddy-daughter date flops or a connection attempt falls flat. Pause the hustle: Sprinting under your own strength makes you reactive and emotional. Pause long enough to pray, ask a trusted friend, or send a text asking for prayer. What's in your pocket? God has given you the keys to your kids' hearts (and your wife's). Carry a physical reminder and keep asking the Holy Spirit, "What's the key I'm missing here?" HOST Jeff Zaugg is the founder and host of DadAwesome. He and his wife, Michelle, have four daughters and live in Florida. DadAwesome exists for the turning of a father's heart: heart-level fatherhood work rooted in Malachi 4:6, because when a dad's heart turns toward heaven and home, it ripples into his family, his church, and his community. In its first nine years, DadAwesome has served roughly 6,000 dads by name through the podcast, coaching cohorts, challenge events like Team DadAwesome Spartan races, and twice-weekly prayer calls, with a 20-year mission to reach 75,000 dads by name by 2038. DadAwesome helps dads be awesome dads, then resources, launches, and celebrates them as they carry it to other dads. Key Quotes "You will get on the wrong bus if you are living life distracted. You'll be headed in a direction you don't wanna go." (Jeff Zaugg, 10:36) "I just don't wanna be stuck in my seat as a dad. I wanna get up and ask for help." (Jeff Zaugg, 12:10) "Our kids benefit from a dad who tries again." (Jeff Zaugg, 13:18) "It's a huge deal in fatherhood to pause and ask your heavenly Father, pause and ask a trusted friend, pause and send a text asking for prayer." (Jeff Zaugg, 14:19) "God has given us keys to connect deeply, to speak love and life into their hearts." (Jeff Zaugg, 16:00) LINKS Leave a VOICEMAIL: https://www.speakpipe.com/DadAwesome Join Team Awesomeness (monthly support team) at any level from $7/month to $1000/month... We have 41 families committed to fueling the ministry DadAwesome as we head toward celebrating 9 years of AWESOMENESS this coming winter: https://www.dadawesome.org/give Join the DadAwesome Prayer Team: Text "pray" to (651) 370-8618 Apply to join the next DadAwesome Accelerator Cohort Subscribe to DadAwesome Messages: Text the word "Dad" to (651) 370-8618 7-Day Video Series: dadawesome.org/book Free Chapter + Intro Video Series: dadawesome.org/book The DADAWESOME book Hearts Toward Heaven prayer call: Mondays, 6:10 a.m. Central Hearts Toward Home prayer call: Fridays, 12:00 p.m. Central Team DadAwesome Spartan events and vision nights Show notes: https://www.dadawesome.org/blog/459